


A Lunatic's Lament

by orphan_account



Category: Bandom, Pierce the Veil, Sleeping With Sirens
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-20
Updated: 2019-07-20
Packaged: 2020-07-09 03:35:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 24
Words: 55,528
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19880953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Sweet, innocent Kellin Quinn has been taken by a psychopath and locked up in his basement. His only source of comfort being the boy locked up in the room next to his, Vic. Why has he been brought here and what are...





	1. Chapter 1

"Do you guys want to hear a horror story?" the boy asked his friends who were sitting across the couch from him at the party.

"You? Tell a scary story? Oh please," his friend laughed at the notion.

"Trust me, I know a good one. In fact it's said to be a true story which happened to two boys a couple of towns over a few years ago," he enticed the others who had dared to listen in. Eager people gathered around, curious to hear of the story.

"It all started on your average Saturday night."

\----

Kellin's POV:

It was loud in the arcade section that night. Pinball machines pinging at every chance they got. Teenagers talking, laughing and cheering on their friends who were competing in whatever game had captured their interest. It was your typical Saturday night here in the small town country town that I lived in. My friends, Jack and Gabe, were playing skee ball as I watched on happily.

"Do you guys want a drink?" I asked them.

"Nope," Gabe responded.

"Nah, we're good. Thanks though," Jack said.

Both of them were too immersed in the game, so I left them to it and went over to the concession stand. This place was a sort of hang out, it had everything for your entertainment really, like an arcade, pool tables and movie theaters, just to name a few. I got to the cashier and she smiled brightly, her dark red hair bouncing over her shoulders.

"How can I help you today?" she asked cheerily.

"Could I just get a regular coke?" I smiled back at her.

"Sure," she said and turned to retrieve it.

I felt a presence next to me and looked to my side, surprised to suddenly see another boy there, or more like a man. He was the same height as me, had pale skin, blonde hair and blue eyes. He looked older than me though. I think it was the scruffy stubble on his face that made him look that way.

"Hey there," he said, flashing a charming grin, "Let me buy that for you."

I had to admit, I was surprised that a guy was hitting on me. That didn't usually happen here. Almost everyone here knew each other, in fact almost everyone in town knew each other on a first name basis. This man I had never seen before in my life. Perhaps he was new to town or just passing through.

"Um, thank you for the offer, but I'm capable of paying for myself." I said, politely rejecting him.

"No really, I insist," the man said, being much too persistent for my liking.

"No really, I've got this," I said firmly.

I handed my money over to the girl who gave me the drink.

"Can't you tell when a guy is trying to win you over?" he asked.

I frowned in confusion. Why would he pick me? There's nothing particularly different or special about me.

"There's plenty of other people here you can win over. Why me?" I asked.

"Oh come on, pretty boy like you..." he said and smiled.

I admit, the attention was nice, but rules are rules and I can't date. He seemed a little too old for me anyway. The more I looked at him the more I saw he could probably be in his early 30s. Maybe he thinks I look older. Unlikely though.

"I, uh, I appreciate the thought, but I should really get back to my friends," I said, dismissing the conversation. I went to walk away but he stood in front of me.

"How about you ditch those two and come home with me?" he questioned. Wow, that was forward of him.

"I can't, I'm not into guys, sorry. Bye," I lied and maneuvered past him.

I wasn't straight at all, but it was easier to lie rather than put up with him hitting on me again I went back over to my friends, watching them play once more. They barely even noticed me there seeing as how into the game they were. I looked back over to the concession stand and noticed that the man was gone. Good. He had begun to give me the creeps anyway. I took my phone out of my pocket and looked at the time. It was nearing 10 o'clock.

"Hey guys, should probably get home," I told them.

"Nah, Kellin, stay for a little longer," Gabe said. I shook my head though.

"I can't. I have to get up early for church tomorrow," I said.

They merely rolled their eyes. They weren't Christians like I was. I was raised by my parents in a Christian household, and thankfully they weren't the judgmental type who scolded people for being gay. They're smart enough to know I can't help my sexuality, so instead they accepted me, even though I knew the thought of me having a boyfriend wasn't something they really loved. I think they think it's a phase, but as long as they accept whatever it is, what they think is fine by me.

Of course, I did want to date though. I wanted a boyfriend. Even though I was a Christian, I wasn't 100% sold on waiting until marriage to have sex. I was more interested in waiting until I was in love.

"Well, I'll see you guys when I see you," I told them.

"Later!" they said in unison.

They glanced up from the game and smiled at me. I threw the remainder of my drink in the trash before leaving the building. The streets were empty. They always were at this time of night. I had walked through them enough to feel somewhat safe though. I made my way towards the bus stop. I lived in the suburbs just out of town so I needed to catch a bus to and from there. It was a little cold tonight and I cursed myself for not bringing a jacket, instead walking around in a maroon t-shirt and black jeans.

I heard a sound behind me which mad me spin around quickly. I was on edge and I think it was because of the way that man from earlier had looked at me. I glanced around in every direction but there was no one to be seen. It was probably just a stray cat. We get a lot of those here. I turned back around, calming myself down, and continued on my way.

I saw the bus stop up ahead and was disappointed to see there was no one else there. I could have used some company right now. I was still a little jumpy. I sat down on the bench and let my paranoia get the best of me. It was, like I thought earlier, probably stray cats or squirrels. Actually it was probably the wind making the sounds. I had the feeling someone was watching me though

"Come on," I whispered to myself, hoping that the bus would hurry up and get here.

This is ridiculous. I shouldn't be this scared. This was a good town and nothing bad ever happened in it so I don't know why I was acting like this. I don't have any reason to be. It was deathly silent now and I think that frightened me even more. l let out a sigh of relief when l saw the lights of the bus in the distance. I stood up, watching it slowly turn onto this street. It was still a good distance away and I stood there, feeling jittery, wanting it to get here quicker.

"Hurry up dam-,"

Those were the only words I got out of my mouth before a hand clamped over it. My first instinct of course was to scream, but they were muffled out. I struggled against whoever this person was as they dragged me off the side of the street. Oh no, what was happening here? I was right to feel paranoid. There was someone watching me! I hadn't even heard them come up behind me.

As one hand stayed over my mouth, the other was wrapped around my body, keeping my arms pinned down. We fell into the bushes and looked on in horror as the bus drove straight by after not seeing me. Once again I kicked and screamed but who would hear? No one. My screams came out as measly whistles in the night.

He let go of my body and I knew that was my chance to run, but before I could I felt a sharp stab in the side of my neck. I was quick to figure out that it was a needle. What? No! He's drugging me?! There was a frenzy of panic going on in my body. I just wanted to get away but once again he held me still. My body was rapidly shutting down. I couldn't move my arms or legs, then finally my vision went hazy and I was out like a light.

\----

It was a surreal experience. I had never even gotten drunk before in my life so when I woke up and my body felt numb, plus my mind in a confused daze, I was terrified. What had happened to me? Was I dying? Is this what that sensation was? Was I even awake right now? I swore I had my eyes open but I could see nothing but black.

As I came to my senses I could feel the fabric around my eyes. I was blindfolded. What else could I feel? My hands were tied behind my back, but that was the only part of my body that was constricted. My body was rocking from side to side and I could hear the distinct sounds of a car. I was in a car. It didn't take me long to figure out that I was locked in the trunk.

"Help me," I gasped out, although I knew no one would hear me.

My voice was croaky and my throat was dry. I needed water, but that was the least of my problems. Fear was coursing through my veins as I remembered what happened. I had been innocently waiting for the bus when I was attacked from behind. I didn't see the person. though. Who would want to hurt me? I was nothing but nice to everyone. I've never been in anyone's bad books. I wouldn't hurt a fly, yet here someone was trying to hurt me. Would this be the end of my life? With that thought I started screaming for help.

"Help! Somebody please help me!" I shouted as best I could.

We could have been driving through a town and people might hear me. That's the hope I was holding onto.

"Please! Can anyone hear me?! Help me please!" I screamed louder.

Desperation was getting the better of me as I screamed louder and louder. My head was throbbing and I felt dizzy. I couldn't move my body either. I felt helpless. Suddenly the car came to a stop. Absolute fear, that's all I could explain it as. I held my breath, waiting in anticipation. I heard footsteps crunching along the gravel. My heart was racing as it got closer and closer. Then I heard the trunk open.

"Stay away from me! Get away." I shrieked and tried to move back.

With my paralyzed body it was practically useless. He grabbed my upper arms and pulled me out of the trunk. My lower half landed on the ground with a thud. I was being dragged somewhere now.

"Please don't hurt me. Please, please don't kill me! I didn't do anything to you! Please!" I begged desperately.

He said nothing. I felt like crying but I was too terrified. My desperate pleas for him to stop seemingly fell on deaf ears. I felt myself being hauled up a couple of steps then across hardwood floor. Were we in a house? Further along I was dragged and then I heard a door opening. Where was this lunatic taking me?!

My back hit against a set of stairs. We were going down? To a basement? That's what it felt like. We got to the bottom of the stairs and then my back hit something soft.

"Please, please let me go," I pleaded.

I tried to get up but I felt so weak. My body was useless. He turned me over I felt the ropes around my wrists being taken away, freeing them. The footsteps sounded again, receding away from me. Whoever it was, I assumed a male considering his strength, walked up the stairs then the door closed.

With weak arms I took the blindfold off and looked around, squinting. It was dark in here, wherever I was. I attempted to sit up, but both my mind and body gave out once more and I fell asleep. The second time I awoke I felt much better than the first. I was still groggy but I was more alert, and so was my body. I was quick to realize the situation I was in. I sat up quickly, groaning as my head spun in my dizzy state.

"You're awake?" a voice asked.

I gasped, crawling towards the closest wall and pressing my back up against it. I looked around, but I was still hazy and couldn't comprehend anything that I saw.

"Who was that? Stay away from me!" I said quickly.

"I couldn't get to you even if I tried," the voice said again.

It was a friendly tone, which just confused me more. Who was it and where was the voice coming from?

"Down here." I focused my vision and looked around the room properly.

It was dark, but on the floor at the wall furthest away from me I could see a light, and creepily enough a face. Now that my eyes had adjusted to the dark, I saw that there was a wall blocking me from whoever this person was, but close to the ground there was a small section cut out of the wall where I saw bars and this person's face.

"W-who are you? Let me go," I said.

He must have been laying on the ground, peering into wherever I was. This whole situation was strange and terrifying.

"My name is Vic. If I could let you go, then I would. But I didn't bring you here," he said solemnly. It was as if he had said those words a hundred times before, "I was taken and brought here... just like you."

"W-what? Taken by who? What is going on?" I asked.

I felt tears well up in my eyes. I had never been much of a cry baby but in this situation, with me so scared and confused, I felt like I needed to cry.

"I don't know who. In all my time here I've never seen him or spoken to him before," he told me. In all his time?

"How long have you been here for?" I asked my fellow captive cautiously. I was scared of the answer. He didn't say anything.

"How long?!" I asked aggressively. He had a pained expression on his face.

"Um...I can't really keep track of time. But a-about a year...give or take a few months," he said quietly.

That made me start crying. A year? He was kept here by this psycho for a whole year? Would I be kept here for that long? Would I never see the light of day again? Suddenly there was a sound, like the sound of metal scraping and a bang. I looked around, startled, and noticed that the light was gone. I crawled over on the floor to where it had been and felt around. I could feel the gap in the wall, but it was now covered by a metal sheath. I had been blocked off from this person.

"Wait! Don't go! Come back! Please!" I shouted. I got no response. I hit the metal but it barely made a sound.

"Please! Can you hear me?!" I screamed, hitting the wall. Once again I could hear nothing. I gave up, sitting on the floor and crying alone in my solidarity.


	2. Chapter 2

"Okay Kellin, snap out of it," I whispered to myself.

Crying wouldn't get me anywhere, would it? No, it wouldn't. Did I really think this person who has me held captive would actually have a heart and let me go because I was upset? Naturally I was a cry baby, but for now I had to keep a level head and try to figure out what's going on here.

I picked myself up from the ground and looked in every direction. There was nothing but black, except for a red blinking light in the corner of the room. What was that? I stepped towards it slowly. Something brushed against my shoulder and I yelped in fear. My heart was racing and was breathing heavily. I felt around and calmed down when I grabbed hold of the object. It was what felt like a thin chain. I pulled it lightly, resulting in a clicking sound and the room lit up.

I looked up, seeing the light that let off a dim glow. I was finally able to see even though the light wasn't that bright. I looked back to the red blinking light. To my horror I saw there was video camera in the corner of the room attached to the roof. I was being watched. I slowly walked closer to it, seeing my reflection. The lens suddenly moved. They must have been watching me at this very second. That was too creepy for my liking.

I brought my attention back to the room. The place was spacious. It was about the size of two average bedrooms. The walls were made of a dark brown brick. I looked to the floor where that man, Vic, had been. There was a space about two by two feet that was covered by metal. I bent down and tried sliding or pushing it open, but nothing worked, so I stood up.

I looked around again. Against the other wall was a simple mattress with a pillow and blanket. The bedding looked clean, in fact despite that this was a basement, everything looked clean. Next to the bed was what looked like a small door in the wall. I went over, turned the handle and opened it. I poked my head through and noticed that it looked like a type of laundry chute or something like that. I looked up, seeing black. I wondered if it led to another part of the house. I shut the door quickly because who knows what could be up there, or down for that matter down.

I looked around again. A little bit away from the bed near the stairs that led up to a door was a simple shower head and a toilet. Speaking of the stairs, I ran up them to the door and turned the handle. It was worth a short but of course it was locked.

"Let me out of here!" I shouted and hit the door with my palm.

I want to yell, scream, curse and tell this person how much of a sick freak they are but it wouldn't be helpful. I have a greater chance of getting out of here if I'm nice, rather than being aggressive.

"Please let me out, please. Just let me go and I won't tell anyone what happened," I said through the door.

Surely the man would have to be listening, right? I got no response. I couldn't hear anything anyway.

"I have money," I said, although it was a lie, "Let me out and I can transfer however much you want into a bank account."

Nothing. No reply. Nothing at all. I gave up for now and went back down the stairs. I sat on the bed, huddled up in the corner with my knees to my chest. What kind of sick bastard brought me here and what are his plans? I don't know why someone would want to hurt me. This just didn't make sense. I wanted to talk to the other boy again and ask him if he knows what's going on. I'm sure if he did then he would have told me before.

I sat there for a while and was feeling tired but I wasn't willing to sleep. I was too scared about what might happen if I did. I wanted to stay alert. I couldn't tell whether time was going fast or slow. I think it was still night outside. Who knows?

A little while later I heard a sound coming from the chute. The sound was getting closer, maybe like something was getting lowered. As soon as the sound stopped I ran over to it, opening it cautiously. Sitting there was a tray of food. I looked up the shaft quickly and saw a light, which was quickly gone as a person shut the door on their end.

"Hey! Come back!" I shouted, to no avail though.

I was left alone once more. I looked down at the tray of food. It was canned spaghetti and bread. There was a note sitting on the side of the tray which simply said "eat" on it. Yeah, right, like I'm going to eat something that this freak has offered me. I slammed the door shut instead and went back to my position on the bed.

My thoughts started going dark and morbid. I wondered if was going to get murdered. If I was then why would they try to feed me? Why would I be supplied with a bed? I hadn't been hurt so far. Yes, I was drugged, but I didn't even have a scratch on me. I ran my fingers through my hair and sighed. I was the type of person who needed to know things, so it killed me that I had no idea what was going on here.

I didn't know how long I sat there for, but I had been completely lost in my thoughts when I heard the sound of screeching metal. I looked to my side quickly and saw that the gap separating me and the other boy was gone, so now there were just metal bars separating us. I sat there, unsure of what to do. Did I want to talk to him or not? Was he even still there?

"Hello?" he questioned and a second later I saw his face.

"Yeah," I said, making my decision to move.

I crawled over on the ground and lay on it, propping myself up on my elbows, so I could communicate with him. His shoulder-length brown hair brushed against the concrete floor as he got a little more comfortable and closer.

"Are you okay?" he asked me.

"Not really," I told him truthfully.

"I mean, like, physically. He didn't hurt you, did he?" he asked. I shook my head quickly.

"No. What about you? What's it like in there?" I asked.

I strained my neck forward to try and get a better look. His room looked similar to mine.

"Our rooms are the same," he said.

I nodded slowly. I can't believe he's been down here for a whole year. I wonder if anyone came looking for him. Actually, I wonder if anyone would come looking for me? Surely my parents would, and even my friends.

"He tried to give me food," I mentioned.

It felt weird to communicate with this stranger, but he was in the same predicament I was in so we were instantly comrades.

"Tried?" he questioned.

"I didn't eat it. I don't trust the food. He could have drugged it for all I know," I said. He was silent for a moment, looking thoughtful.

"He's never done that to me before," he said.

Maybe so, but I still didn't trust it. I dropped that topic.

"So...do you have any idea who brought us here?" I asked.

He shook his head, looking solemn, "I have no idea. I never made any enemies. I never got on the bad side of anyone, but here I am. I spent a long time trying to figure out who it was and why they brought me here but in the end it was driving me crazy so I stopped."

I couldn't even begin to imagine what he's been through. It was amazing that he was able to hold a proper conversation with me and not be rocking back and forth in a corner going crazy.

"How did he, you know...kidnap you?" I asked.

"I was walking home from work like I do every night and he attacked me from behind. That was the last thing I remembered before I woke up here," he said.

"Did you by any chance see a blonde man there? With blue eyes. He looked a little rough around the edges and kind of short," I asked. He looked confused.

"No, I don't think so. Why?" he asked.

"Because this guy tried hitting on me before I was taken. I think it might have been him, maybe. I don't know," I said.

He was quiet as he thought about what I told him, then he spoke again.

"How were you taken?" he asked.

"I was walking back from an arcade in town and was waiting for the bus when he grabbed me, pulled me into the bushes and drugged me," I told him.

He gave me a sympathetic look. He seemed like an empathetic people person. He looked really calm talking to me right now, while I on the other hand had a shaky voice and was filled with panic on the inside. I decided to question him about it.

"You seem so calm and casual talking to me," I said.

"Yeah...well I guess I'm used to talking to people like you. You aren't exactly the first boy he brought here," he said. That got my attention.

"I'm not?" I asked quickly, my voice scared and timid.

"No." he said. My mind was racing now.

"How many others were there?" I asked, afraid of the answer.

"I don't know...30, maybe more. They all looked like you too," he said.

"W-what?" I stuttered out.

"Uh, like...they were all pale, had green eyes, delicate features and...your hair is different though," he said.

"My hair?" I asked.

My hair was usually black, but I had recently dyed it dark blue. I just wanted a change.

"Yeah...the other boys all had black hair. You're the first to have something different," he said.

I was feeling really sick now. So apparently this psycho had a type, and I was it, despite my different hair color. Another thought came to mind which made my skin crawl.

"What happened to the others? Where did they go?" I asked. He gave me a hopeless look.

"I don't know. Each boy is here for only one night. We talk for a little bit, then this thing closes," he said and tapped the bars, "And they don't open again for a week or two, maybe more, then when it does there's a new boy."

"What does he do with them?" I asked. Once again I was on the brink of bursting into tears.

"I told you, I don't know," he said.

"Well, what do you think he does? Do you think he...kills them?" I asked quickly. I was definitely panicking now. This can't be happening.

"I...I don't know," he said, and for the first time he didn't seem so calm, "I'm sorry, um...what was your name?"

"Kellin," I told him.

"I'm sorry, Kellin. I didn't mean to scare you, I just think you deserve to know what you're in for, or at least as much as I can possibly tell you about it," he said.

I sat there in silence, still trying to process what I've been told. The boys just disappear? There was no doubt in my mind that they get murdered.

"I'm sorry this is happening to you," he told me quietly. Sorry doesn't make me feel okay though.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Nauseous." I said.

He seemed so worried about me, but he's the one who's been here for a year. That's a lot worse than what I'm going through.

"How are you?" I asked.

"Me?" he seemed genuinely surprised that I was asking him.

I guess the others who had been here would have been too overwhelmed by everything to ask him how he was. My parents had taught me to always ask someone how they are if they ask you first. It was just the polite thing to do.

"I'm...I'm okay," he said.

In the dim light, I could see the see the pain in his eyes. I think that either he was putting up a strong front for my benefit, or maybe he had become numb to whatever he was feeling. I made a mental note not to bring up how he's feeling again because, even though I didn't even know him, I never wanted to see him hurt like that again.

Just at that moment the metal snapped closed and I was blocked off from him. Our captor had decided that our conversation was over. I was left there with Vic's words clouding my mind. From what he told me, it was at this point that the boys in this room were taken away. That very well could have been the last time I'd ever see him. He could be the last person I ever see or talk to.

With the thoughts of impending doom not leaving any time soon, I sat against the wall and stared up at the door, waiting.


	3. Chapter 3

I didn't sleep at all although I was sure it was probably night time, who knows? I was stuck in the room for hours on end. Time confused me because I didn't know how long I had been out for when I was drugged. It turns out it wasn't that long though because eventually I noticed a ray of natural light coming from a small window near the top corner of the room near the shower meaning that I had only been in here for the one night.

How had I missed that window before? I guess in the darkness of night I simply didn't see it, but now that the sun was out I could see it clearly. It was now morning and there was a window. I scattered up from my spot on the ground.

My muscles were aching from not moving for so long. I went over to the far wall and looked up. The window was situated near the ceiling, and me being short I couldn't see through it. I jumped but that did very little. I looked around the room, my eyes landing on the mattress. I grabbed it and pulled it over to the corner. With the help of the springs I managed to jump high enough to glance out window. All I could see was shrubs.

"Damn it," I whispered to myself.

I wanted to at least get an idea of where I was but this gave me nothing. I jumped up and hit the glass as hard as I could, but it didn't break. I didn't expect it to either. I highly doubt my kidnapper was stupid enough to leave me in here with glass that's easy to break. After hitting it a few more times I gave up and pushed the mattress back to its place. I flopped back down on it and closed my eyes.

I desperately didn't want to sleep. I was scared as hell and wanted to stay as alert as possible. This man could kill me at any second and I wanted to be ready to fight. A few moments later I heard light banging in the chute which snapped me out of my little rest.

I sat up, went over to the chute and opened it just in time to see a plate full of food get lowered in front of me. There was a note next to it simply saying "eat, please." I got angered quickly. This freak locks me up and then tries to be nice and polite? What the fuck is he playing at? I picked the plate up and looked down at the breakfast. What should have been tempting just made me sick.

"I don't want your food!" I screamed and threw the plate as hard as I could across the room. It smashed on impact and fell to the floor in a dozen pieces.

"Let me out of here!" I screamed and hit the hard wall with the palm of my hand, "Do you hear me you sick freak?! Let me out!"

I was breathing heavily in my anger. Most of all I was getting frustrated that I wasn't getting some sort of a response from this man.

"They'll come looking for me! My friends and family will find me and you'll go to jail! You'll rot and die there!" I shouted. Once again I was greeted with nothing but silence.

"Let me go! Please!" I pleaded, although I didn't know who I was begging to.

In a way I was pleading for the man to let me go, but also I was very religious at heart and was begging a greater power to have mercy on me. I never did anything wrong so why am I being punished? Once again I heard sounds coming from the chute. It was already open so I rushed over and found some clothes that the man had dropped. It was a simple white shirt and white shorts, plus a towel. I couldn't stand all white. It reminded me of insane asylums or hospitals. There was a note with them.

"Have a shower and put these on or else," I read the note out loud I wanted to tell him to go and fuck himself but I wasn't stupid. I knew the threat was real. This man was dangerous.

If what Vic's telling me is right then there have been about 30 other boys here before and for all I know this man could have killed them for not obeying him. The smart this to do would be do as he says, and so I went over to the shower and turned it on.

I was hesitant. I was well aware that in the corner of the room there was a video camera watching my every move. I didn't want to do this at all. I've never been seen naked by anyone other than my parents when I was younger. Even when I was in school I never showered and dressed in the locker rooms. I was conservative, but that was about to change.

Reluctantly I took my clothes off, keeping my back to the camera at all times. I wouldn't give whoever this was the satisfaction of seeing all of me. I stepped under the warm running water and cleaned myself as quickly as I could. I did feel better after getting this constant dirty feeling off of me, but I also felt sick knowing this man was probably watching me. Then again maybe he's not.

I finished quickly and grabbed the towel. I dried off, got dressed in the clothes and sat on the bed, patiently waiting for whatever came next. I was anxious and nervous. I was basically freaking out. When the metal opening that separated Kellin and I noisily slid open, I practically had a heart attack. I clutched my chest, calming myself down.

"Hello?" Kellin's questioning voice called out.

It occurred to me that he probably thought another boy had been brought in since they all get taken so quickly.

"It's me." I said timidly.

I crawled over on the ground and lay down to look at him. It was only now that I noticed he was in the same clothes as me.

"You're still here...no one has ever lasted this long," he said in surprise.

"What do you think that means?" I asked. I just wanted answers even though I was sure he didn't know anything. I somehow wanted him to magically tell me everything I needed to know.

"I have no idea," he said, sounding both confused and interested at the same time, "This is as different for you as it is for me. I'm used to them leaving by the morning."

I refrained myself from asking him what that means again. He didn't know. Apparently there was something different about me, although I didn't know what. There was nothing special about me at all. If this man had gotten rid of 30 other boys after the first night then why would he break his pattern for me? I simply didn't understand, but thinking about it hurt my head so I changed the subject.

"Do you know he's watching us?" I asked.

He nodded, "Yeah, I know."

"Do you think he can hear us too?" I asked. I cautiously looked up the camera which had moved and was focused solely on me.

"I think so. He tends to separate us once he decides the conversation is over, so he's probably listening." He said.

That made sense. Whoever was doing this clearly liked control.

"Do you have any theories of why he wants us here?" I asked. He gave a defeated look.

"I gave up on theories long ago. All theories do is drive you crazy. If I've been here for a year and haven't found anything out then I doubt you will either," He said. I guess he has a point.

"Have you ever tried to escape?" I asked.

"I never had the chance. I tried to think of ways but he's got me pretty securely locked in here. He's never even opened the door since he first brought me in," He said.

I couldn't imagine being in the one room for a whole year. It made me question why Vic had been here for so long and why the man didn't get rid of him like he had the others.

"Do you think there were other people in the room you're in?" I asked.

A thoughtful look crossed his face, "I think so. I mean, the room looked like it had been lived in before. Maybe he went through a lot of boys until he settled on me," he said.

"Do you think he's settled on me?" I asked.

He went quiet. I don't think he had much hope in him. He was used to seeing boys disappear so he probably thought I would too. I didn't blame him. for thinking that.

"For your sake I hope so," he said.

The silence that followed was a depressing one. It was hard to keep our spirits up in this place. I was taken just last night but it felt like so much longer. It was like I had been here for days, not 12 hours.

At that moment the opening closed and I was alone again. Conversation over, I guess. I looked up at the camera, glaring at it. This man can't be watching all the time though, right? He has to sleep sometime. I didn't say it to Vic just then because I was sure we're being listened to, but I had a plan to escape. I couldn't just sit by and do nothing.

I looked over at the metal chute, wondering if I was small enough to fit in it. I was determined to find out, but I'd wait until it was late at night so there's more chance of my captor being asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

I was quick to find out that time in here went on forever. With nothing to do but stare at a wall, boredom was quickly eating me alive. I had hoped that I'd be able to talk to Vic again just so I had some company and wouldn't be so afraid all the time. If I were back home, then I would have gone to church today, then maybe hung out with my friends in the afternoon before going home and having a nice family meal. I felt incredibly homesick. I wondered what they were doing. I never left the house without telling my parents so they'd surely be worried sick. I knew they'd be looking for me and have the police involved. I just hoped they knew the right place to look.

I rested my head against the cool brick wall. My eyes were drooping and I wished that I could just shut my brain off and sleep, but I had enough will power to stay awake. I had to. I had been focusing on my plan to escape all day. Mostly I was trying to work up the courage. I'd have to climb up the chute which would be difficult seeing as gym was never my strong point. I had to be quiet about it too.

After that, I didn't know what I'd do. I have no idea what's waiting for me up there. I assume it's a house, maybe. I guess the first thing I'd do is try and set Vic free, but I know my first priority is getting out of here. I can run until I find someone with a phone and call the police who would go back for Vic. It was extremely risky to try and escape and might even get me killed if I get caught, but I had to try, right?

The man tried to feed me again, but I wouldn't eat anything. My stomach was growling all night, but I ignored it. After that I waited for a long time. I heard nothing from Vic or the man upstairs. It was late into the night now and I knew this would be my chance. I got up and went over to the chute. I looked back at the camera. It was still faced on the bed where I had been sitting. He wasn't watching. As slowly and quietly as I could, I pulled open the door of the chute.

I tried to steady my breathing. My heart was racing a million miles an hour. Okay, I can do this. I poked my head into the chute and looked up. I couldn't see anything. I carefully climbed inside. Now all I have to do is find some body strength somewhere and climb up. I put one foot against the side and pushed myself up with my arms. All was going well, that was until the door at the top opened. It startled me so much that I released the pressure on the sides and dropped back down.

"Bad, bad boy," and unfamiliar voice said from above. It gave me chills.

I looked up, desperate to see the person, but I didn't see him. The second I looked down, deciding that I had to leave, I felt something drop on me. Scolding hot liquid covered my arms and body. I screamed out in excruciating pain.

I scampered out of there as the boiling water kept coming.

"Fuck fuck fuck!" I cried over and over again. It was an unbearable stinging agony. I ran over to the shower and turned the cold water on. I sat under it, gasping in pain and letting the coolness soothe my skin.

"Kellin?!" Vic's voice said in alarm.

My eyes shot up and I saw him here in my room. My confusion was over-run by the whole situation. Although the pain had lessened considerably under the cold water I was still in shock over it. I said there panting heavily as Vic appeared in front of me.

"What happened?" he asked quickly, reaching out to me. My first reaction was to recoil, but I didn't want to leave the cold water.

"I-I was climbing up the chute and he poured boiling water on me," I said and looked down at my arms. They were glowing a bright red.

"Is it feeling better?" he asked in concerned.

I wasn't sure. Adrenaline was still pumping through my veins. The boiling water hit my arms, chest and stomach. Miraculously my face was untouched. I tenderly took my shirt off and threw it to the side. I sighed in relief once it was gone and the cold water got to it easier.

"It stings a bit," I said. He gently took hold of my arm and examined it.

"It doesn't look like it burnt through the skin. Just give it a little time and I'm sure the pain will leave soon," he said.

I was beginning to calm down and realized what was going on. Fear rose in me because that man caught me trying to escape. Who knows what he'll do to me. He so easily just burnt me so I can only imagine what else he could do to me. I had a feeling I was in a lot of trouble now. Another thing, Vic is in my room.

"How are you in here?" I asked.

"The metal and bars just lifted up and I heard you screaming so I crawled through," he said.

I looked past him and sure enough both the metal and bars were gone so he could have easily slipped through. I looked at him, honestly a little scared to be locked in a room with a stranger, but then again everything scared me in here. I could tell Vic was a kind person though. I was going to ask him another question but the water shut off. As soon as it was gone my skin heated up. A banging sound was heard in the chute. The two of us looked up at it then at each other. Vic made the move to go to it. He opened the door and looked back at me.

"Cold water, cloths and burn ointment," he said and looked back at them in silence. He looked up at the ceiling and started shouting.

"You burn the shit out of him and send this down as if you fucking care?!" he yelled angrily. The irony of the situation was ridiculous. This man clearly wanted to harm me, but then he tries to help me? I don't understand. I shakily stood up and walked over to Vic, ignoring the pain. I looked at the objects and saw a note with them.

"Look after him," I read it out loud and looked at Vic. Silence passed between us. Look after him? So now this person cares about my wellbeing? I was so confused.

"Come on, come lay down," he spoke softly.

I was a little concerned about doing what he asked. I didn't know what I should have done because I didn't want to do what that man wanted, but I was also in pain and it was increasing more and more as my skin dried. I made my decision and went to the mattress, laying down on it. Vic had the bowl of water, cloths and ointment and sat next to me.

"I don't understand this man," he said as he put one of the cool clothes across my stomach. This felt so weird letting a stranger do this.

"I can do it," I said.

"No, he told me to. I don't want to make him any angrier," he said. He dipped another cloth in the water and laid it out on my arm.

"Well, thank you," I said a little awkwardly.

"What were you even doing up there, Kellin? Are you trying to get yourself killed?" he asked like I was stupid.

"No, I was trying to escape!" I defended myself. He didn't say anything else about the topic as he continued putting the cloths on my red skin. My eyes drifted away from him and to his room.

"Has that even happened before?" I asked.

"What?"

"The bars, have they ever gone up? Have you ever been allowed in here?" I asked, looking back at him. He finished laying the cloths out and looked at me.

"No, never," he said.

"He spoke to me," I remembered. His eyes went wide in surprise.

"He did? Why? What did he say?" he asked quickly.

"Just before he poured the water on me he said that I was a bad boy," I said.

"What did he sound like?" he asked.

"Um...older, yeah he was definitely older and sounded, I don't know, masculine," I told him.

"I can't believe he talked to you. After all this time he's never said a word to me," he said.

"Well...you said I'm the first guy to stay for longer than a night, right? I guess maybe things are changing now," I suggested. I was probably wrong. Honestly I had no clue what I was talking about.

"Yeah, maybe you're right," he said. He ran his fingers across my burns lightly. He seemed so gentle and kind. It could be worse, I could be locked in here with some creep or an asshole.

"How can you be so comforting?" I asked.

"30 boys...I got used to comforting them. I don't know. Force of habit I guess," he explained. That made sense.

"Does it still hurt?" he asked. They did a little, but they didn't really.

"I think they're fine now," I said.

He nodded and one by one took the pieces of cloth off. He picked up the burn gel next. I was going to tell him that he didn't have to do this but we both know he did. Who knows what this man would do to Vic if he didn't. So, I let him coat my burnt skin in the gel. They weren't that bad, but the gel definitely helped. I could feel myself getting more and more tired as I lay here practically getting pampered by him.

"Vic," a voice, that wasn't my own or Vic's, sounded through the room. It was like there were speakers in the roof or something. Vic looked just as surprised as I must have.

"Go back to your room," the voice spoke again. I recognized it as the same one that spoke to me earlier.

"I take it that's never happened before either?" I asked. He shook his head.

"Never," he said. He put the cap back on the tube and set it next to me before standing up.

"I guess I'll see you later, maybe," he said. I nodded.

"Yeah, thank you, you know...for looking after me," I said. He just nodded before going back over to the opening and quickly crawling through it. The second he was in the bars and metal clamped shut once more.

I couldn't fight sleep anymore no matter how much I wanted to and I quickly felt myself drift off.


	5. Chapter 5

I woke up with the hope that everything that happened would turn out to be a messed up nightmare. When I realized that I was still here, I just stared up at the ceiling contemplating the situation. Everything felt so surreal. I really felt like I was in a dream or a movie. Nothing felt real, but at the same time this was the most real situation I had ever been in. I knew I was screwed but I still had hope that the police would find me. I've only been gone for a day and a half. They probably only just started searching for me. They'll get tracker dogs or something like that and I'll be found in no time. Everything will be okay.

"Everything will be okay," I whispered to myself convincingly.

I had to have hope or else I'll have nothing. I sighed and rolled onto my side. When I did my eyes fell upon the opening in the wall that Vic and I used to communicate. The metal slate that cut us off from each other was gone. My curiosity got the better of me and I got out of bed, crawling over to it. I looked inside. The sunlight from the small window near the roof was the only thing illuminating the room.

From what I could see, Vic's room was identical to mine. He had the chute, the shower, toilet, stairs and mattress. He was currently laying down on his back, fast asleep. I wondered how long the metal had been gone for. Does this mean that the man wants us to talk to each other? I decided not to bother Vic by waking him. Instead I went back to my bed and sat down, waiting for something to happen.

I wondered how Vic hadn't gone crazy thinking about why he's here, because I haven't even been here for that long and I feel myself slipping into insanity as I hopelessly tried to come up with theories. Nothing was making sense. Whatever this man wants with us, I just want him to get it over with quickly. I needed to know why he needed me specifically and why the other boys weren't good enough.

A loud chiming sound rang out through my room. The dinging continued for another 10 seconds before stopping. I looked around urgently wondering what was going on, then I heard the scraping sound of something being lowered in the chute. I got up quickly and went over to it. I opened the door, finding breakfast. I rolled my eyes and slammed the thing shut.

"I don't want your fucking food!" I screamed loudly and in anger. My voice echoed around the room before a deafening silence fell.

"You should eat," Vic's voice came from the other room. I guess the chiming woke him up. Looking down at the opening I saw he wasn't there.

"I don't want to do what this man wants me to," I said.

"I know, and I was the same at the start. But if you're kept here for a while like I have been, then you'll have to eat anyway. Come eat with me," he said. A moment later I saw his tray of food on the ground near the opening. Maybe he was right. I would have to give in sooner or later, and the bacon and eggs smelt really good.

"Okay, fine," I said. I opened the small door back up, retrieved the food and sat with Vic.

"How long has this been open for?" he asked. I shrugged.

"I don't know. I just woke up a little before the alarm, or whatever that was, woke you up. This was already open," I said. I couldn't see his face while we were sitting up eating, but it was still nice just knowing that someone was there.

"Did anything happen in there during the night?" he asked.

"No, I was just sleeping. Why?" I asked.

"I don't know. He tends to be communicating with you more than he communicates with me, so I thought he might have tried talking to you again," he explained.

"Oh, well he didn't. Did anything happen over there?" I asked.

"Nope," he said.

He sounded a little bitter. I guess it must suck when your kidnapper doesn't talk to you for an entire year, but then he speaks to the new guy. I had a feeling he had desperately been waiting for something to happen but then it just doesn't. Maybe it's a sense of jealousy. I know it's stupid to be jealous of someone else who's kidnapped, but he's been here for a long time so I guess this is the only life that he knows now.

We continued eating the food in mostly silence. I ate rather quickly because I was starving. When I was done I got up and put the tray back in the chute.

"Do you think he'll let us talk for a longer time today?" I asked.

"I have no idea, but I hope so. It can get kind of lonely in here," he said.

I heard him shuffling around, meaning he was done eating too. Well, if we're going to be talking a lot today then I might as well be comfortable doing it. I grabbed the pillow off my bed and set it down on the ground before laying down with my head resting on it.

"Oh a pillow, good idea," Vic said. I looked into his room, seeing him do the same as I had and soon he was lying next to me, looking at the ceiling. I looked at the ceiling too, sighing.

"So what do you usually do to pass the time here?" I asked.

"Nothing. Sleep, mostly. Sometimes I work out too. I want to keep my strength up in case I ever come face to face with that man. Other than that there's not much you can do in here. I just think a lot," he said.

"About what?"

"Everything. Literally everything. Sometimes I just let my mind run wild, making up little stories, imagining what life would be like if I ever got out of here," he said. It was kind of sad really that he's been through this.

"I'm sorry you've gone through this." I said quietly.

"I'm sorry that you're here too," he said. We looked at each other, smiling lightly. The mood was so depressing though, but he changed the subject.

"So what did you do before you got here?" he asked.

"College. That's all," I said simply, "What about you?"

"I was a student. I was in my second year of college majoring in graphic design." he told me. That means he's a little older than me seeing as I've just started my first year of college. He'd be about 20 or something.

"I was just...normal," he continued on, "I had a normal life. I had normal friends. I had just started seeing a normal guy. Everything was fine. I never thought this would happen to me."

"Wait...you were seeing a guy? You're gay?" I questioned him. He looked at me, nodding.

"Yes, is that a problem?" he asked defensively. I shook my head quickly.

"No, no. It's just that I am too. Do you think this man planned that?" I asked.

"I think so. I mean, I don't know about all the guys that have been brought here, but I found out that most were gay. He might have planned it like that, I don't know," he said.

So this man wants two gay guys locked up, but why? Maybe he was homophobic and liked to torture them? I sure hope not. Then again if he wanted that then Vic wouldn't still be here, would he?

"I can't believe he's kidnapped over 30 boys,"I muttered in disbelief.

"Maybe even more than that," he said.

"More?" I questioned.

"Yeah, I mean, I've been here for a year. Who know how many guys he went through before settling on me, and there could have been a lot more in your room before I got here too," he said. The thought made me feel sick.

We both changed the topic after that, talking about things that were a little lighter. We talked to each other for hours and hours, all day, about our lives, or random things like music and movies. The two of us had a lot in common. We both liked the same rock music and movies. We both seemed completely normal too which just confused me because if someone wanted to kidnap someone else then wouldn't they chose people a little more interesting? That's not to say that Vic isn't interesting though, because I find him very interesting. I hung off every word.

We had spoken literally all day and by night time we had both dragged our mattresses over to the opening to talk to each other in comfort. We were both laying on our sides, looking at each other through the bars. He just finished telling me a story of how his parents walked in on him with his first ever boyfriend. I found it hilarious and was laughing for the first time since I got here. I almost forgot the situation we were in.

"This is the first time in a long time that I've really had a companion in here..." he said softly, and suddenly I was sad again.

I sighed, wondering if I'd ever be in Vic's position; being stuck in here for so long and desperately waiting for someone to come along in the opposite room and stay there. What if Vic got taken away like the other boys had?

"Hey, we're going to get out of here one day. I'm not sure how, but I don't know, it's like things are finally different because you've lasted longer. It sparked this determination in me to get us both out of here. We just have to have hope," he said. He gently rested his hand on mine in a sweet gesture. I found myself desperately wanting to believe his words and trust him. I had to. If I'm going to survive then I've got to have hope, and so I smiled at him and nodded.

"Yeah, we'll get out of here," I said.

We just looked at each other before he took his hand away. We didn't speak much after that. I was getting pretty tired and I think he was too. His eyes closed and I just watched him. I hadn't realized it before but he's actually quite attractive, and really nice. Maybe in a different situation I would like him romantically. But this is not the place for thoughts like those. This is a place where my only thoughts had to be surviving each day. I sighed and rolled onto my back, slowly falling asleep.

A sound woke me up in the morning. I opened my eyes, blinking a few times as they adjusted to the light coming through the window. When I looked around my heart stopped, because standing at the top of the stairs was the dark figure of a person in the shadows. My heart rate quickened up and I sat up,scrambling back. The man slowly started coming down the stairs.

"No, please, whatever you're going to do, please don't!" I pleaded. I was absolutely terrified. Despite my pleas he kept coming.

"Leave me alone!" I screamed.

"What's happening?" Vic's tired, croaky voice came from the opening.

"He's here, Vic, he's here," I said in a panic on the brink of tears.

The man hadn't said a word. The closer he got the better I could see him. He was fairly tall, looked to be in his early 40s maybe. He was handsome, I'll give him that, but had a really creepy vibe to him, obviously. His hair was dark and messy, his skin pale, his eyes a bright green and he had a five o'clock shadow. He was wearing simple blue jeans and a white shirt. He got to the bottom of the stairs and I got up from the ground quickly. I backed away into the corner and desperately looked around for some sort of weapon but found nothing.

"Leave him alone!" I heard Vic shout. I stood there shaking in fear as the man got closer.

"This will go a lot easier if you don't fight me, Kellin," the man said.

"Please, p-please just get away from me," my voice quivered. I had no such luck. He towered over me and grabbed my arm.

"No! Don't touch me!" I screamed, struggling against him.

"It's okay, my child, it's okay," he said softly. He was too strong for my puny frame. He dragged me up the stairs, with me kicking and screaming.

"Stop! Please don't take him!" Vic shouted. This man wasn't listening to us. His arms were now firmly wrapped around my waist and my back was to his chest as he took me further up. I latched onto to railing of the stairs, not willing to let go.

"Please don't do this!" I cried. I was sure he was going to kill me.

"Kellin!" Vic yelled out.

"Vic! Please don't let him take me! Please!" Tears were running down my face now. I knew Vic couldn't help me. My last ounce of hope disappeared when I lost my grip on the railing and he took me out of the room.


	6. Chapter 6

"Please, please don't hurt me. Please, I never did anything to you," I pleaded to him with tears staining my cheeks.

Everything was happening so quickly. He took me from the basement and I barely had a chance to glance around the next room before I was taken to a bathroom. I looked around at my surroundings quickly. There was a bathtub with a shower, a basin with a mirror above it, and in the middle of the room was a chair.

The man took me from the chair and forced me down on it. The second he let go of me I tried to run, but he grabbed me by the shoulders and pulled me back down. I felt his stubble against my cheek before he whispered in my ear.

"Don't move, son," he said firmly. Son? He's delusional! However, the sheer menacing tone in his voice was enough to chill me to my core and keep me frozen in place.

"That's a good boy," he said and patted me on the shoulder.

I looked up at the mirror that was directly in front of me. He was looking down at me with, surprisingly, a look of adoration. He ran his fingers through my hair. I flinched and tried ducking my head away but he grabbed a fistful of my hair and pulled me back up. His eyes connected with mine in the reflection of the mirror. Wanting to be strong I looked back with a glare.

"Blue is my favorite color, you know? However, this just won't do," he said and affectionately ran his fingers through my dyed blue hair again.

It was disturbing and honestly I'd rather he be mean. He let go of me and out of fear I stayed put. He slowly walked in front me, but I kept my gaze away from him. He took hold of the bottom of my shirt and pulled it up. An alarm went off in my head and I tried fighting him off.

"Please don't, you don't have to do this. Please," I begged him. He was undressing me and straight away my mind went to the worst. With difficulty, he managed to get the shirt off and toss it to the floor. I simply looked up at him with wide eyes. He gave a sound of approval.

"Perfect," he breathed.

He went back around behind me and my eyes followed him as he bent to the floor and picked up a roll of duct tape. He then grabbed my arms and put them on the arms of the chair. He wrapped the duct tape tightly around both so I couldn't free myself, then did the same to my legs.

"What are you going to do to me?" I asked through gritted teeth.

"Aww, Kellin, don't be scared. If you behave I think we're going to get along just fine," he said and smiled.

"I doubt it," I spat out. He ignored me.

He went to the basin and opened a drawer. He took out a pair of plastic gloves. Panic rose in me.

"Gloves? Why do you have gloves on?" I asked quickly.

Was it so he didn't get blood on his hands after murdering me? I couldn't help but think of the worst possible scenario. I was wrong though, because next he took out a box of hair dye. Was he going to dye my hair? Now what Vic mentioned about my hair being different made sense. This man wanted a black haired boy for whatever reason.

"Why am I here? Why did you kidnap me?" I asked. He looked up at me and smiled.

"You naturally have black hair, right?" he asked, completely ignoring me. I ignored his meaningless question.

"You can let me and Vic go, you know. We won't tell a soul about you," I bargained with him. Once again he ignored me and went about mixing the hair dye instead.

"Now, I'm not exactly a hair dresser, so sorry if I mess this up," he said, sounding way too casual for a kidnapper. I figured asking him questions was futile if he's going to keep ignoring them.

He came back behind me after shaking the bottle of dye, then in silence he started spreading the substance through my hair. What is this sick freak's deal? I was so scared and angry, and not just because of this man kidnapping me, but also because of how he kept Vic here for so long. He may be acting kind right now, but I wouldn't be fooled. He's a dangerous man and I had to remember that. I hate him. He is the enemy. Eventually he finished lathering the dye in my hair then stepped away, admiring his work.

"There, that's better. We just have to wait 20 minutes and you'll look just like him," he said. 1

"Who? Who will I look like?" I asked.

Looking into his eyes in the mirror I saw pain flash in them briefly. He didn't answer me, but my mind was running a hundred miles an hour so I was able to put it together. He took boys that looked just like me. He himself even has some of the same features, plus he called me his child and son. I was a replacement son, which brought up two questions; what happened to his actual son, and why is Vic here? Did Vic look like another son of his? Given, Vic is of a Latino background, but maybe this man had a wife who was as well. Or a step son? Or maybe he adopted? I don't know. So many theories were flying through my mind.

"It doesn't matter," he said, walking in front of me. He took the gloves off and set them on the counter, then bent over a little so he was eye level, "The point is...you're a perfect match."

His eyes slowly scanned my naked torso, and I wasn't stupid; I saw the look he gave me. That wasn't the look a man should give his son. Maybe my theory was wrong, or maybe he's just fucked up. He reached out to me and I tried to move away, but couldn't. His fingers lightly trailed along my face. I didn't want him to touch me ever again, but he was. A sick feeling settled in the pit of my stomach as he ran his fingers down my chest towards my stomach. Anxiety filled me and I felt like crying. I didn't like where this was going at all. I wouldn't let him do this to me, so to teach him that I wouldn't just stand by and let him do this, I pulled my head back and with as much force as I could I head-butted his face.

"Ah, fuck!" he shouted and stumbled back.

A second later the back of his hand collided with my cheek as he backhanded me. My head flung to the side and instantly I tasted the metallic flavor of blood in my mouth. It stung like a bitch and just upset me more. I wasn't used to being hit at all. I had to say it was worth it when I looked up at him and saw blood gushing from his nose.

"You idiot!" he screamed, "I have been nothing but nice to you!"

It was like I had flipped a switch and he was consumed by a rage. Suddenly I was regretting what I did. I could have just made this ten times worse. He stormed out of the bathroom and I was left here shaking in fear. Where did he go? Did he go to get a knife? Or maybe a gun? Was he going to kill me? I looked around the room desperately. There was basically nothing in here, not even a window to look out of. Moments later he was back and glaring down at me.

"I actually like you, Kellin. That's why you're here and none of the other boys are! You're perfect for what I need and I don't need you to go fucking it up!" he shouted at me.

The next thing I know he was shoving photographs in my face. My curiosity got the better of me and I looked at them. I wish I hadn't. He sifted through all the photos, showing me. They were all boys, all around my age and all looked the same as me. They were tied up and on a bed. Each boy had tears in their eyes and were completely naked, some of them even covered in bruises or cuts. Some of the pictures had this man doing things to the boys; touching them, having intercourse with them. It didn't take a genius to figure out that every one of the rejected boys got sexually abused by this psycho. The revelation brought tears to my eyes.

"Do you want to end up like them?! Because trust me, if you keep being trouble then this'll happen to you too!" he yelled.

I shook my head quickly as the tears fell. I can't believe this is happening. I wanted to be sick. I looked away from the pictures. I couldn't handle it anymore.

"Please don't do that to me," I whimpered.

"I don't want to," he said in a kinder voice.

I breathed heavily to try and calm myself down. I didn't want to become an emotional mess right now. I needed to be strong, but I was so upset over what I had just seen and I was thinking of how I could be next. He set the photographs down on the counter and became eye level with me again.

"Okay, that was a lie, because part of me does want that," he said and once again his eyes scanned my body, "You have the perfect figure, Kellin. Just like his," he whispered that last part under his breath. He was fucking sick!

"I wonder..." he trailed off. He reached forward again and there was nothing I could do to stop him.

"Don't touch me," I cried, but he did anyway, no matter how much I begged him to stop what he was doing.

He hooked his fingers around the top of the shorts and pulled them down, leaving me exposed. I couldn't hold back the sobs now. I couldn't bring myself to look at the man, but I heard his breathing change, going heavier. He stood away from me and out of the corner of my eye I saw him undo his jeans.

"Please don't," I sobbed.

My vision was blurry with tears. I was a mess, no longer the strong person I was pretending to be. I shut my eyes tight, just wishing everything would go away. The man never touched me though. I heard things though, the familiar sound of skin rapidly rubbing against skin, plus his deep moaning. He was looking at me and pleasuring himself. The thought made me sick so I tried to block it out.

Please, just be over, please. I wanted to go back to the basement. I wanted to be anywhere but here with this freak- show. It lasted a long time. I tried my best to cover myself, but I had little movement. I felt like throwing up. I felt violated even though I had barely been touched. I just wanted it to be over, and finally it was. He finished and I heard him zip his pants back up, then I heard running water. I finally looked up to see him washing his hands.

"You're disgusting," I spat out.

"What did I just say about causing trouble?" he asked calmly.

I didn't answer him. It was a threat and I was smart enough to obey him. It was either obey him or probably get killed. He turned to me, looking down.

"Say one word about what I showed you or what I just did, then I'll cut out your tongue, and that's a promise. I wouldn't want this to tear our perfect family apart," he said.

A perfect family? What in the world was perfect about this? He thinks I'm his son and he fucking jacks off while looking at me? How is that perfect? Will he do the same to Vic? Was Vic supposed to be my brother in all of this?

"Perfect family?" I questioned.

"Yes. You, me and Vic. We're a family and we're going to be very happy together," he said.

I was sitting there in shock. We were his perfect family. I couldn't breathe right now. This man is psychotic.

"Alright, that's been in long enough," he said.

He took something out of his pocket which I was quick to recognize as a pocket knife. At first I was scared, but then he cut the duct tape off of me. I had the perfect opportunity to punch or kick him, but with his threats still fresh in my mind, I didn't. I felt like breaking out into tears again when he pulled my shorts back up. He then made me stand and roughly pushed me to the basin. He made me bend over and then rinsed my hair thoroughly.

"This is definitely better than the blue," he said.

I didn't say anything. When he was done he made me put my shirt back on then led me back to my room. He covered my eyes with his hand as we walked. When we were back to the basement doorway I ran down those stairs the second he let go of me. I went to the far wall and slid down it breaking down in tears once again.

"Kellin?!" Vic's voice asked urgently. I could barely respond through my tears. I can't believe that just happened.

"Open the fucking bars!" Vic screamed. The door had just slammed closed though as the man left. I sat there crying and trying to calm down.

"Kellin, Kellin talk to me, what happened?" he asked quickly. What was I supposed to say? That man said that I couldn't tell him anything.

"N-nothing," I choked out, "I'm just... scared. I-I thought he was gonna k-kill me."

"But what happened? What did he say? Why is your hair wet? Wait, did he dye it black?" he threw all of these questions at me. All of which I couldn't answer in the state I was in.

"Get away from me," his voice sounded. again.

I looked up and Vic was no longer there.

"Get away!" he screamed.

I crawled over to the bars and looked in his room. He was on his feet, and walking down the stairs was our kidnapper. Vic backed away, much like I had when I was taken. I feared for his life.

"You and I need to have a chat, Vic, just so we're all on the same page," the man said. He got to the bottom of the stairs but he didn't go any closer to him.

"I just told Kellin here that we're a family now, the three of us, and so I expect you to be a civilized family member," he said.

"A family? What kind of fucking sick bullshit is that?!" Vic snapped.

"Calm down, Vic. I respect you enough to tell you why you're here. We're going to be a family, a perfect family. I didn't think it was going to work out until I found Kellin. Truth be told I was close to giving up, but I have found him and he fits in perfectly for what I have in mind, just like you do. We're all going to be very happy together," the man said.

Vic was standing there not saying anything. Like me he was probably shocked at the revelation.

"I'm going to give you two solidarity for a while to spend some time by yourself," he said and took something out of his pocket.

It had a little red light on it. He pressed a button and just like that the metal sheet was up and I was blocked from the both of them.

"Vic!" I yelled out, feeling panicked and worried about his well-being. I couldn't hear anything at all. Now I was stuck here in silence to replay what just happened upstairs over and over again.


	7. Chapter 7

I sat on the mattress trying not to think about anything, but at the same time I couldn't help my mind. from wandering. This man wanted a perfect family and apparently I fit the description he wants. I don't know why he wanted me. Those other boys I saw in the pictures looked just like me so he could have chosen any one of them, which had me thinking why he didn't.

There were two options I gave myself. Either 1, the boys had fought against him and he ended up deciding that they couldn't be the ones. That left me terrified, knowing that I couldn't fight back anymore at the risk that I'll end up just like those boys. Or 2, he had chosen me based on my personality, which merely confused me more because there was nothing about me that stood out. Whichever option was true, all I knew was that I was well and truly screwed.

There was no getting out of this I felt so dirty because of what the man did. I wanted to shower to get the feel of him off of me, but I also didn't want him to get any kicks out of seeing me naked again. I felt sick to my stomach. This was all so messed up. I curled up into a ball as the day went on. I never moved from my spot and I couldn't fall asleep either. I was terrified that at any second this man could come back and rape me. He clearly wanted to and he could easily over-power me, so why didn't he? Maybe there was still an ounce of good in him.

The light from the window slowly faded as the day went on and soon it was night time. I had stayed in this spot, in this position, for the entire night. It was only when I heard the familiar sound of a metal sheath sliding that I finally made a movement. I looked towards the opening as the bars lifted too. A few moments later and Vic was there, climbing through. The second he was in the opening closed again. I looked at it in confusion. We were stuck together? I looked up at his concerned face.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked me.

The simple question was enough to make me start crying. I covered my face with my arms as the sobbing continued. Was I okay? Of course I wasn't, not after what had seen. Of course Vic knew nothing about it and l wasn't allowed to tell him either.

"Do you think you could tell me what exactly happened up there?" he asked.

I felt the weight on the mattress shift as he sat down next to me. I glanced up at him through blurry eyes. I blinked a few times and my vision went better. I could see that he was worried but also curious. I wasn't allowed to tell him about the pictures or that the man touched himself. Everything else I could though. I took a deep breath as the sobbing stopped.

"Um, well...he took me into a bathroom and-"

"What did you see? Are we in like a house? What's it like?" he asked quickly. I could tell he had been waiting for a long time to get any sort of details from what it's like up there.

"I didn't see much. But I'm pretty sure it's a house. He took me to the bathroom. and duct taped me to a chair. He, uh, he dyed my hair because I guess he wants me to look like the others," I told him. He looked up at my changed hair. I was back to my normal black.

"What did he say to you? He said this morning that we're a perfect family?" he questioned. I nodded.

"I think he thinks I'm his son or something like that," I explained. He raised his eyebrows in confusion, so I went on, "He called me son and child, and said I look just like him, but I don't know who he was talking about. It makes sense though, doesn't it? I mean...he's taking boys that all look the same and he wants a perfect family. What if he wants me to be his son?"

He sat there looking thoughtful for a little while then spoke, "What about me then? Where do I fit into it?"

I shrugged my shoulders because I honestly didn't know. He sighed and raked his fingers through his hair.

"This is so fucked up," he whispered. I just nodded.

"Did he do anything else to you up there? Like other than dye your hair?" he asked.

"No," I lied.

I realized that I must have looked kind of stupid crying over simply getting my hair dyed a different color so I came up with something else that wasn't entirely false.

"I was just so scared. I thought he was going to kill me," I said.

"It's okay, he didn't though. He didn't hurt you at all, right?" he asked.

He frowned and reached forward, touching the side of my face lightly. I had completely forgotten that the man hit me. I wondered if there was a bruise there. If there was I couldn't exactly lie about it.

"He hit me, because I, uh, I headbutted him first," I said sheepishly. That got a smile out of him.

"Did it hurt him?" he asked in amusement. I nodded.

"Yeah, I made him bleed," I said, adding a small laugh which was short lived.

"Good," he muttered and silence fell over us.

He was the first to speak again. "Right, so he wants us to be his family. So...maybe if we just behave ourselves then he won't have a reason to hurt us, right?" he asked.

So that's it? That's our lives now? We have to be part of this man's perfect family and do whatever he says in order to stay alive? What kind of life is that?

"We're never getting out of here," I whispered meekly.

"Not true," he said and moved closer. He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into him, "We'll get out of here one day. I promise."

I didn't think I'd want to be touched right now, but he was my only source of comfort and it was like I needed it. I turned my head towards him and buried it into chest as the tears flowed freely once more. I hoped this wasn't crossing over some sort of line with him. I was quick to find out I hadn't because he made us lay down and wrapped his other arm around me tightly. Maybe he needed this comfort just as much as I did. He seemed a lot stronger than me, but obviously he's been through a lot more. He's used to being here. He's come to terms with the fact that he'll probably never get out of here, even though he just promised me we would, but I had a feeling he said that for my benefit only, not because he meant it.

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep," I whispered.

He didn't say anything to that. Nothing else was said for the rest of that night. If he wasn't here right now I probably wouldn't have slept out of fear, but I found myself falling asleep because even in this crazy situation, I felt safe with him nearby.

I woke up to talking, although it wasn't Vic's talking. I didn't quite comprehend what was being said. I sat up and looked at Vic who had just woken up too. I couldn't help but take note of how cute he looked first thing in the morning. It was ridiculous, right? I was in a life or death situation and I was thinking about how this boy looks.

"Vic, leave Kellin's room immediately. Both of you have showers. Now," the voice of that man came from the roof.

I looked at Vic to see he had heard what was said. He peered up at me and a small, but sad smile formed on his lips.

"I guess I'll see you later," he said.

I think there was a sense of awkwardness between us, I mean after all we did just fall asleep in each other's arms. On the other hand though it seemed like a normal thing to do. I just nodded at him and then he left. The opening closed once more and I was on my own. The man told us to shower and I wasn't game enough to disobey him.

"There are clean clothes in the chute," the voice said, making me flinch at the sound.

I went over to the chute and sure enough there were clothes there. They were the same as the ones I was already wearing, a white shirt and white shorts. Along with them was a towel. I sighed and went over to the shower. I took my clothes off and cleaned myself as quickly as I could with my back to the camera. I wondered if the man was watching Vic too.

I finished and dressed myself in a hurry. After that the man gave me food. I ate a little bit of it because I was hungry, but only enough to get me through the day. I didn't want to eat too much. I didn't want to take anything from him. I sat back on the mattress and stared at a wall. What else was there to do in here? I had way too much time to think about things and I wanted it to stop. I thought about my family back home. There was no doubt that they'd have search parties out looking for me now. That was the only hope I could hold onto. My mom would be worried sick and my dad would probably replace his worry with anger at the world. My friends, well... I don't know how they would be acting. They cared about me, I knew that, so they'd probably be scared and worried.

My friend Jack, he was kind of like a protector. He always looked out for me and so I knew that he was probably blaming himself for not looking out for me that night. It wasn't his fault though so I hoped he wasn't kicking himself for it. All I wanted to do was get back to them all. Right now though, I only had one friend. Just as I had that thought, the metal and the bars lifted. I briefly considered going into his room, but I was familiar with my own. It was like my own little not so comforting comfort zone and I didn't want to leave it, so he soon showed up, climbing through.

"Hi, you alright?" I asked, wondering if anything happened in there while we were separated.

"Yeah, you?" he asked when he stood up. I nodded. He walked over and sat on the bed next to me.

"Do you think he wants something?" I asked.

There always seems to be a reason for Vic being in my room. Whether it be to help me with my burns, or to comfort me. It was like this man was pushing us together and making us get to know and care about each other. Although I haven't known Vic for a long time, I know I do care about him. It was hard not to. He's the only person I have.

"I have no idea," he said with a sigh.

He rested his head against the brick wall. I brought my knees to my chest and held them closely. We sat in silence because really there wasn't much to say. We were both waiting for something to happen, anything. And then it did There was a quiet banging sound in the chute as something dropped.

Vic and I looked at each other in curiosity. He was the first one to make a move. He went over, opened the door and took out a small box. It wasn't just any ordinary box though. It was wrapped with a bow around it. He glanced up at me with a questioning look on his face. I just shrugged because I was just as confused as he was.

"It says 'to Vic'," he spoke as he read the tag.

I stood up from the mattress, moving closer. He undid the bow and took the lid off. As he looked in his eyes went wide.

"What is it?" I asked quickly, unable to see. He snapped the lid back on.

"No," he said and looked up at the ceiling, "No! I won't do that!"

"Do what? What is it?" I asked quickly and panic rose inside of me. He looked at me apologetically.

"What is it?" I asked again, my voice breaking. What could possibly be that bad?


	8. Chapter 8

"Please don't make us do this," Vic said to the ceiling once more.

Do what? I was starting to get aggravated because he still hadn't told me what was in the box. While he was looking away I caught him off guard and snatched the box off him. He didn't fight for it back. He knew I'd have to find out what was in it eventually. I took the lid off and my eyes went wide. Inside was a small, square, foil packet. I had seen these before in health class back in high school. The man had given us a condom. Also in the box was a bottle of lubricant.

The full impact of what the implications were hit me. My hands were shaking and my knees felt weak like they were about to give out. My eyes flashed up to Vic quickly.

"He wants us to have sex?" my voice squeaked. I was about as virginal as anyone could get. I had barely even kissed a guy before and now I was going to be forced to have sex?

"I won't do it!" Vic shouted to the ceiling.

A moment later something else dropped down the chute. I heard a faint but quick ticking sound. Vic, who was still standing by the small door, picked up the object.

"It's a timer with 30 minutes on it," he explained. I felt, if possible, more panicked now that we had a time limit on this.

"I don't want to do this," I said quickly.

"And you think I do?!" he practically shouted. He looked really stressed. I turned and looked directly into the camera.

"We we're not doing it," I said stubbornly.

"You will do it...or face the consequences You have half an hour," the man's deep voice came from the roof.

Consequences. My mind flashed to the pictures I saw. That's what the consequences were. If we didn't do this then he might think that we aren't right for his perfect family. I guess this answered who Vic is supposed to be in all of this. Maybe he's supposed to be this man's, son's boyfriend or husband or something like that. It doesn't matter right now, the point was that if we didn't do this then that man could kill us. I slowly turned back to Vic. Our eyes locked together.

"We have to do this, don't we?" he asked.

I shakily nodded my head. Tears sprung to my eyes and I couldn't help but think of how much of a cry baby I was. I'm a virgin! This isn't how I imagined this to happen at all.

"I'm scared," I said quickly. My breathing was rapid, like I was starting to hyperventilate. Vic looked down at the timer in his hands and put it back in the chute before walking over to me.

"Okay...don't be scared, please?" he asked. How could I not be though? "We have to do this. You heard him. This man is dangerous, Kellin. We-"

"We have to, I know," I said. He nodded his head slowly. He took the box out of my hands, taking the two items out. He dropped the box on the ground.

"Have you ever done this before?" he asked. I shook my head quickly.

"I didn't think so. You seem too innocent," he said. Innocent; that was a world I could never describe myself as again.

"I don't even know what to do," I mumbled.

"It's okay, I can walk you through it. I'm going to try and make this as easy as possible," he said. Easy? I practically scoffed at that.

"I heard that it hurts. Will it hurt?" I asked. He nodded.

"Yes. But if you relax then it'll hurt less. It's really important you don't try to fight me off or try to stop it at all because it'll end up being worse for you," he explained.

How was I supposed to relax when I was terrified? I wasn't ready for this at all. Even if I were in the outside world and in love with someone, I still don't think I'd be ready for sex. He took my hand and led me back over to the mattress. We sat down side by side, but turned in to face each other. I can't cry. Not now. I'm not the only one going through this. Vic is being forced to do this too, although I doubt he's a virgin like me, but he's still being made to do this. I can't make it worse by crying.

"Try pretending that I'm your boyfriend. Pretend that we've been seeing each other for a while now and decided to take things to the next level. Just, pretend," he said.

It wasn't that easy though. He was trying to make me feel comfortable with this but I just didn't, so I ignored his instructions.

"So how do we, like, do this? I-I don't know how this goes," I said, feeling pathetic. He looked like he was thinking about it for a bit before answering.

"We'll try and keep it as simple as possible. We'll need to do some kissing and touching to turn each other on, and then I'll...um, you know. I'll try and get it over with quickly, alright?" he asked. I nodded docilely. He set the condom and lubricant on the bed and looked back at me.

"Remember, relax," he said quietly.

He moved closer and rested his hand on my thigh. I wanted to flinch away, but I didn't. His face came closer then he placed his lips upon my quivering ones. I just couldn't stop shaking no matter how hard I tried. I closed my eyes as I felt him part his lips and capture my bottom one lightly. Like it was an instinct, I kissed him back. I was hesitant and unsure of what I was doing, but I had seen it a million times on TV before, so it seemed to come naturally.

He pressed his lips against mine a little harder. The hand that wasn't on my thigh came up and he held my neck. I was soon getting the hang of this and my shaking stopped. He leant into me more and I felt his tongue brush along my bottom lip. He did it again, so I parted my lips and his tongue glided along mine. I hoped I was doing this right. I knew that under the circumstances the least of my worries was whether I was kissing him properly.

He gently pushed me back and my head hit the pillow. My heart was pounding in my chest and I couldn't distinguish whether it was fear or because a part of me thought that this actually felt a little good. It wasn't supposed to feel good though, yet I found myself wanting him to kiss me more.

As if it came naturally, I moved my lips against his quicker and he got the hint, kissing me more enthusiastically. This wasn't so bad. He shifted around on top of me so he was in between my legs. One hand was gripping my thigh and the other must have been propping himself up on the bed. I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do with my hands, so I didn't do anything with them.

He was breathing heavily, obviously really getting into kissing me, and I was just going through the motions thinking about how nervous I was and I wanted everything to be over. It wasn't until he grinded himself into me and I could feel how aroused he had gotten through the thin material of our shorts that I finally felt something. Warmth spread through my entire body. I had this hot tingling feeling where he kept rubbing himself against me. I could feel myself hardening quickly.

His hand, that was on my thigh, slowly glided up to my hip the along the waistband of the shorts. He slipped his fingers under them and then paused, as if he was silently telling me what was about to happen. I knew what he was going to do though, and he continued, slowly sliding his hand into them. His warm skin made contact with mine and I couldn't help the gasp that escaped my lips. He stopped kissing me and looked into my eyes.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

His hand had stopped and I found that I didn't want it to. I nodded quickly. Still looking at me, he started moving his hand again. He rubbed me slowly. I had never, ever been touched by anyone else other than myself and I had to admit his hand felt a lot better than my own. For a few moments there I had forgotten that I was being forced to do this. I turned my head and looked up at the camera which was turned and focused on us.

"Don't think about that," he whispered. He connected his lips to my neck, making me shiver.

"Time is running out," a voice came from above that made my heart stop.

Once again I was scared. Vic pulled back, sitting up. He looked down while still touching me. I could see the lust in his eyes. Was I looking at him in the same way? I didn't know. I didn't think so. I was about to have sex, and with someone I barely knew. My bottom lip quivered as I choked back tears.

"Don't cry," he whispered, "Just close your eyes...it'll be over soon."

I did as I was told and closed them, and then...it happened. It was all a bit of a blur as Vic took over, doing all the work. It hurt, and I felt so violated, but the only thing making me keep a little bit sane were Vic's whispers of encouragement and how gentle he tried to be.

This wasn't at all how imagined my first time to go down, or even how I thought it was going to feel. I was relieved that it was over, but I felt so ashamed because towards the end, once the pain subsided and I tried to block out why we were doing it, I actually ended up liking how it felt.

I hated myself. I felt so guilty. It was like I let the man upstairs win. Once it was over, I instantly curled into a ball and let out all of my emotions as I cried. I covered my face just wanting to escape from the world. Never in my life had a felt so disgusting.

"Vic, return to your room," the man's voice said.

I didn't even look up. I just kept weeping, feeling incredibly weak. I felt him get off the bed, then he put the blanket over me. I heard him leave and I was alone again, which was exactly what I wanted right now.


	9. Chapter 9

I felt sore, sorer than I expected. I thought that once it was over then that was it, but the feeling never left. Not to mention I had been crying for about two hours straight which made all my stomach muscles hurt, along with my head. I did calm down eventually though and then I simply felt numb.

Usually when I was upset I would stop, compose myself and then pray to God for help or support. I truly thought that he could help and guide me through life. That's how I was raised and that's what I believed. That's what my parents told me to do. Now though, well now I had little hope. I've always been a good person so I couldn't comprehend why this was happening to me. I didn't know why I was being punished. Had I spent my whole adolescence being a decent person for nothing? I didn't understand anything right now. After what just happened, my faith was lost.

"I don't know what I did wrong," I whimpered to myself.

I wanted a sign, anything at all, to get me through this. All I got was the sound of scraping metal. My eyes fell on the opening between mine and Vic's rooms. The bars lifted too. I waited a few moments for Vic to come to me like he usual would, but he didn't. Panic ran through me and my mind jumped to the worst conclusion. I finally made a move and crawled over to the opening. Looking through I saw Vic sitting there on his mattress, leaning against the wall and staring off in the distance.

"Vic?" I questioned.

I didn't get a reply. I wasn't sure if I even wanted to be anywhere near him right now, but I felt so disgusted being in my own room. My surroundings kept reminding me of what happened. I cautiously examined the edges of the opening. I was scared that it would snap closed when I'm half way through, but I took my chances and quickly pulled myself through. I stood up, feeling my bones crack because I had been lying so still for so long.

"Vic?" I questioned once more, looking over at him.

He didn't even look at me. I was worried about him now. He was my only companion, so even though I wasn't sure if I wanted to be anywhere near him, or anyone for that matter, I went over to the mattress and sat on it.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

He finally looked at me. The steely gaze from before dropped and was replaced with tears glistening in his eyes. I was surprised that after all of that I was the one who was keeping myself together the most. He shook his head as the tears fell. I sat there, unsure of what to do. He covered his face with his hands while he sobbed. I decided to just wait until he got it all out. It actually really hurt to see him like this. In the short amount of time that I've been here he was always the strong one. He kept himself composed and now here he was breaking down in front of me.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" I asked.

I didn't want to talk about it, but I thought it might help. He looked back up at me. Honestly, he looked like a complete mess.

"F-for so long I wanted something to happen, you know? I just needed something, anything just...different. But I didn't expect this. I...I...didn't..." he stopped speaking as he broke into sobs again. I had no idea what to say. He sniffled and wiped his eyes.

"Do you hate me?" he asked.

"What? Of course not. It wasn't your fault, and it wasn't my fault. We were forced to do it," I assured him.

He nodded meekly. He looked like he hated himself. I felt like I had been raped, which means he must feel like he raped someone. He's a good person, I can tell that he is, so it mustn't have been easy to inflict that sort of trauma on someone. Although I really didn't want any kind of human contact right now, I still moved closer and wrapped my arms around him. His body tensed, but then he slowly wrapped his arms around me.

"Thank you," he whispered.

"You're welcome. We're all each other's got, so we need to be here for each other," I told him.

He held me tighter, clearly not wanting to let go any time soon.

"I'm really sorry you went through that," he said.

I didn't say anything, just rested my head against his shoulder. I honestly thought I'd be repulsed to be this close to him after what happened, but I felt comfortable in his arms. We had both been through something traumatic, so it was only normal to feel closer, right? Was it stupid to bond over something so horrible? Eventually we pulled away and smiled lightly at each other. He had stopped crying but I saw the pain in his eyes. My own were probably mirroring them.

"Why do you think he made us do that?" I asked quietly.

I looked up at the camera in the corner of the room. It was pointed right at us. Either this man was watching us right now, or he had been focused on Vic earlier. Who knows? Who fucking cares? I hated this man so much. I looked back at Vic who didn't respond. He merely shrugged, so I gave him my theory first.

"Maybe it's some kind of sick, like...incest porn," I said.

He frowned at me, so I kept talking, "I mean, he thinks I'm his son, so... I don't know. It's just a theory."

Of course I knew that this man was into his son. He had touched himself while looking at me naked after all, and I was supposedly his replacement son. I couldn't tell Vic what happened in that bathroom though.

"I think he's," he paused, looking unsure of himself but then continued, "I think he's trying to, sort of, make us be like a couple. You know, like a relationship."

"Like, boyfriends? Or...?" I was so confused by this theory.

"It makes sense, doesn't it? It's like he's trying to put us together. He went through so many other boys. What if he was trying to find a perfect match this whole time? I mean, he encourages it. He wanted me to take care of you when he burnt you. He let us fall asleep together. He wants us to talk a lot. He made us have sex. What if this is his plan? To force us to fall for each other?" he pondered out loud.

"By forcing sex?" I asked incredulously.

"I don't know. Maybe. This man is dangerous and sick, would you really put it past him?" he asked.

I guess he's right, as much as I didn't want him to be. I thought back to the incident in the bathroom and how the man didn't want me to tell Vic what happened because it would ruin our perfect family. What if when he said that he actually meant he didn't want me to tell Vic because in his sick twisted mind, Vic is supposed to be like my boyfriend or fucking husband or whatever, so he didn't want Vic to get jealous, or theoretically "split us up" even though there was no us.

I felt really sick. This man was twisted. Every day I was finding out that what this man was doing was actually a lot more calculated and well thought out than I originally believed. Something different happened every day. Something new was revealed every day. Which just left the question of what would happen next? If this man was trying to force Vic and I together then what happened earlier was just the beginning. There would undoubtedly be more of it.

"What if we don't do what he wants?" I asked, feeling panicked, "Like what if we fail being who he wants us to be?"

He shrugged hopelessly, "I guess we just have to do what he says and hope for the best."

I looked away from him. This could be a forever thing. I could be trapped here, forced to be close to Vic forever; being forced to have sex with him. And although these thoughts are daunting I couldn't help but think of the one optimistic thing about the whole situation. I looked back at him and spoke in a soft voice.

"For the record... if I'm going to be in this situation with anyone then...well I guess I'm glad that it's with you," I admitted.

It could be worse. The man could have kept me to himself, or I could have been down here with someone horrible. He smiled and held my hand. I looked down at them. We would get through this together. We had to.


	10. Chapter 10

Vic and I were left separated for a couple of days after what happened. The first day I simply presumed that man, who I still haven't found out the name of, just wanted us to have a little time on our own to reflect on what happened. The last thing I wanted was to reflect about anything though, so I spent my day pushing all thoughts from my mind and instead I counted every brick on the walls a hundred times over. I felt like I was a mental patient in a hospital, but it really did help me keep distracted.

By the second day with no contact from Vic, I wondered what that man was playing at. He forced us to get so close and then separated us. It didn't make much sense to me. I didn't count the bricks that day. Instead I allowed myself a few minutes to tell myself that what happened happened and I needed to accept that and move on or else I'll never be in the right frame of mind to support myself through this ordeal.

It was the day after that and I was beginning to get worried. I had woken up a few minutes ago and realized I was still alone. Just as quick as my worry began, it disappeared when both the metal and bars lifted.

"Vic?" I called out straight away. Seconds later he appeared, smiling, and climbed through.

"Finally. I was beginning to worry that he wouldn't let us see each other again," he said.

At first I thought it was a little odd for him to be smiling because last time I saw him he was such a mess. Then I realized that with him being alone for so long he was probably happy every time he got to talk to someone.

"Yeah I was getting worried too," I told him and returned the small smile. I sat up on my bed, sitting cross legged. He came over and sat next to me.

"Anything new happen in here?" he asked. I shook my head.

"Nope, you?" I asked, but he shook his head too.

I guess nothing happening counts as a good thing, right? It was a lot better than one of us being hurt. After hearing a banging sound in the chute as something was dropped, Vic and I looked at each other nervously. Last time this happened we had to do a horrible thing. Vic didn't make a move, so I gathered the courage to do it. I got up and stood in front of the small metal door of the chute. I placed my hand on the handle and held my breath while I opened it. I let out a sigh of relief the second I saw what was inside, but then I was confused.

"Playing cards," I said, I picked up the two decks of cards and closed the door.

"What?" Vic asked, sounding equally confused as I was. I turned back and held the two packs up to him.

"He gave us playing cards," I told him again.

"Oh..." he trailed off.

He stood up and took one from me. We both opened them suspiciously, but there was nothing wrong with them.

"So...do you know any games?" he asked.

I looked back up at him and shrugged, "Uh, I know go fish?"

I had never really played card games before, or at least not since I was a lot younger. He looked at me with an unimpressed expression.

"Go fish? Really? Are you like 5?" he teased.

"Shut up," I grumbled.

The atmosphere was so different compared to the last two times we were together. Those times were intense, right now though things were light hearted. It was really strange to feel light hearted in this place. I guess we were just relieved that the other was okay and we finally weren't alone.

"Let's make a house of cards," I suggested. He raised his eyebrows as if he were thinking about it carefully.

"I've never made one before," he said.

"Me neither. Now's a better time than any, right?" I asked.

He just nodded and we both sat on the ground facing each other with some space between us to start the house. I started to put cards together, standing them up and balancing them on one another. It didn't work out so well at the start. He was doing a lot better than I was, so I followed his example as we made the base of the house.

"Why do you think he's given us these?" he asked. The mention of the man made me feel sick, so I shook my head quickly.

"Can we talk about something else. Just anything else other than that man or why we're here," I requested.

I looked up to see him looking back. He gave a nod and we both looked down again.

"What's your favorite ice cream flavor?" he asked randomly. I was a little taken aback by the random question, but I was glad that the subject was changed.

"Uh, I like caramel, I guess," I said, and I heard him chuckle.

"What?" I asked and gave him a curious look.

"Nothing," he paused, "I like Vanilla."

Was I imagining things, or did his voice have an edge of flirtation to it? I don't even know what could be flirtatious about the conversation we were having, but it was just the way he said that, like it was kind of teasing in a way. I think I missed something there. It wasn't just how he spoke though, it was that he looked me up and down, or at least I think he did. I think I was starting to imagine things and I think I knew why.

He had been closer to me than anyone had ever been before, and although it wasn't a good experience, he was still close to me. We had sex, and even though it was horrible, there was still some pleasure in that. We shared that together. We were forced together; forced to be closer. So maybe in the back of my mind I was imagining that something more was going on between the two of us because of that incident. This was all new territory for me and I felt like I was going to go insane thinking about it. I was supposed to not want to be around Vic because of what happened, but instead I felt more comfortable with him.

"Do you think you have a special connection with your first time?" I blurted out out of nowhere.

I didn't mean to ask that, but I was thinking about it and the words just came out. He looked a little surprised by the question. I was shocked at myself for asking it.

"I don't know. I've never really thought about it," he said. I wanted to disappear into a hole or something. I just embarrassed myself.

"I'm sorry. That was really, really weird to ask," I apologized.

"No, no. It's okay," he assured me quickly, "I mean... well this is a weird situation and we're each other's only source of comfort, so I guess it's only natural that you feel like that."

"Oh...oh, no, I never said that I was feeling like that." I said, feeling incredibly awkward.

I was lying though and I was a horrible liar. He gave me a look of disbelief and smirked, probably mostly to himself though as he went back to the cards. I wondered if this was what he was like in the real world. He was a little flirtatious, maybe even a little teasing. This was the last place I should be getting these thoughts about someone. I shouldn't be thinking romantically at all. This is so dumb.

"What?" he asked. I just realized I was staring at him. I quickly looked away and back at the cards.

"Nothing. Build the house." I said, and so we continued making out house of cards.

It was a good way to pass the time. I felt like we were back in the real world just hanging out because we were bored. It was nice to get a couple of hours to think about something other than everything else that happened. Vic and I continued to build the house, even having to restart over and over when it collapsed. We got the hang of it though and soon we were getting close to running out of cards. Both of us stood on our knees as we finished the top off. It was actually fun. The two of us were actually having fun, or at least as much fun as we could have in a place like this I glanced at him, watching his brows furrow in concentration as he carefully placed a card on top.

"Stop looking at me. You're distracting me," he said.

I looked away, feeling my face heat up. I couldn't help but look at him again. The moment I did he made a mistake and the house of cards came tumbling down. Well, it was fun while it lasted. That word; fun, it was so weird for me think it. Vic sighed and looked at me, but not in annoyance. Like I said earlier, today was a light-hearted day.

"This is so weird," I said and he gave a questioning look so I continued, "It's like...I'm caught between being terrified and liking um, liking spending time with you."

I had muttered the last part so quickly and hoped he hadn't heard me. I didn't want him to think I was coming onto him or anything, because I wasn't, was I? I was just telling the truth. I was starting to think that I had a problem with hiding what I really feel. Once I think about something I just seem to mention it. I was like an open book.

"I get it. It's like we should be scared... but when we're left together we're not really," he said in a soft voice.

We were left in silence just looking at each other. I've never felt like someone understood me as much as he does right now. Maybe it was just because we were in the same situation. Something happened next that I wasn't expecting at all. He leant forward and kissed me. He actually kissed me and at first, I felt like I was really caught off guard. All of my feelings today were so confused.

This was a messed up situation and I shouldn't have wanted this but I found myself liking the kiss. My heart and stomach erupted with butterflies, and it shouldn't have. He pulled away quickly and his eyes went wide.

"I am so sorry, I-I just, I mean, I spent all this time by myself and now you're here and I...I'm just so sorry. That was way out of line," he spoke so quickly that I wasn't sure if I caught it all. I was too lost in what just happened. I caught on that it was an apology though.

"No," I said in a daze, "Don't be sorry."

With those words, and with a lot more confidence than I thought I ever had in me, I kissed him lightly. My eyes closed as he kissed me back, somewhat hesitantly. This was wrong. This was so so so wrong, but in the moment it was right. In that moment we forgot about everything and we were simply two people in a room who had connected.

"I'm glad you two are getting along," that man's voice came from above.

Vic and I were brought back to reality and we practically jumped apart as if we had done something wrong and gotten caught. Was this wrong though? I mean to the man, did he think this was wrong? Were we going to get in trouble? Suddenly this sick theme of a "family" came into my mind. It was as if we were two children getting caught by a parent. That made me feel sick.

"You're going to make love again," the voice said, and my blood ran cold.

Yes, I just kissed Vic and yes, I probably felt something for him, but that didn't mean I wanted to have sex with him again. I was crying almost instantly when I realize I'd have to go through that again. This was a good day, it was really good and now it had turned so bad. It was like the world hated me.

Vic and I couldn't say no, we just couldn't. Our lives depended on doing what this man wanted, so we did it. It wasn't as bad as the first time. It was still emotionally traumatic, but physically it was okay. I was too upset to even make it to a climax. It probably didn't help Vic that I was crying half the time. I didn't want to cry and I tried to stop myself for Vic's benefit. He ended up just closing his eyes so he didn't have to see me like that.

Afterwards, Vic was made to leave. I cried for a little while, but not nearly as much as I had the first time. I could deal with it better this time. I think what upset me most was the dramatic change in atmosphere. It was horrible to have this day which was actually, in a weird way, happy, just to have it ripped all away by this sick freak. When will it all just end? I wanted it to end.


	11. Chapter 11

This was never going to end. It had been a week, and Vic and I just spent more and more time together, being forced to have sex or just be in the same room as each other, talking. It happened again and again, and even though it didn't hurt anymore, and even though sometimes it felt good, mentally I was a wreck. There were no longer any tears though. It just happened, and I tried to block it out. I tried not to let it get to me, but it was hard.

There was only one ray of light in this long, dark tunnel; the fact that it all happened with Vic. He was what kept me going on. It was the hugs of comfort after every time it happened. We had each other in this ordeal, and I felt myself get closer and closer to him. I longed for the moment after something bad happened where he would embrace me, as if to protect me, and I would hold him back, making it clear that I didn't hate him for the things he was forced to do. I always saw the guilt in his eyes, but it wasn't his fault. We needed each other. He was my only source of light in this darkness.

I have to get through this. I have to have strength. There was a line that I hadn't quite crossed yet. It was a line that went from holding on to hope, to falling into hopelessness. If I stepped over that line then everything would collapse and be so much worse. I was on the edge though. I felt worse in the mornings, not knowing what the day would bring. Yesterday I was alone, and that was both good and bad. Today I assumed I'd be with Vic again. As much as I craved the comfort from him, I didn't want anything bad to happen. Sometimes it was better alone, I guess.

I sar cross-legged on the mattress in the corner of the room, hoping that Vic wouldn't come in here today. I don't think I could handle if anything happened. I didn't want to be here. Of course I didn't, but today I felt that desire more strongly. I thought by not that I would be saved. I thought the police would have found me and that I'd be at home in my warm bed, with my mother to comfort me, and hanging out with my friends like a normal person again. I thought this place was temporary and I'd get my life back, that I'd never see this sick freak living upstairs again, but day by day went by and nothing happened. I was losing my faith, and my mind.

It had been fifteen days since I was kidnapped. The conditions here were awful too. It was cold. It was May though, approaching summer. The days were slowly becoming warmer, but the nights were still so cold. I lost weight because I either refused to eat the food given to me, or I threw it up right after I ate it. I was sick all the time, both mentally and physically. It was hard to believe that it had only been two weeks.

I hugged my knees to my just, put my head on them and wept. I was never getting out of here. I had to accept that. I thought that doing everything the man upstairs told me to do would change things, like he'd let me out of the basement at least, but no, nothing changed. He had no sympathy. The lack of change made me not want to obey him anymore.

When I heard the metal between mine and Vic's room open, I didn't bother looking up. I knew Vic would crawl through the hole, and I was right. I heard him crawl through, then heard his footsteps as he came towards me. I didn't move.

"Kellin? Has something happened?" he asked carefully.

"No," I muttered, not bothering to show my face.

"Just a bad day?" he asked.

I felt him sit down next to me on the mattress. Finally, I looked up, meeting his concerned eyes. He looked better than I did. There was no mirror for me to see myself, but there was no doubt that I had bags under my eyes and was thinner than I had ever been. He's been here for a year, so he's used to living like this.

"Every day is bad here," I said. He gave a look of understanding.

"We all have bad days. Believe me, I've had my fair share of them," he said.

His intent was the reassure me and make me feel less alone, but I felt so lost and hopeless that his words just went right through me. He moved closer and hugged me. I rested my head on his shoulder. His arms around me was usually so comforting, but today they did nothing for me.

"Hang in there, Kellin," he said quietly.

I felt his lips against my cheek. Once again, it was supposed to reassure me and make me feel better, but that didn't happen. Nothing could get through to me today.

"Perhaps making love would cheer you up?" the voice came from above, and a moment later I heard something come through the chute. I looked at Vic helplessly. I was on the verge of breaking.

"Can we not do it today, please?" Vic asked, looking up at the veiling. We sat in silence and I prayed to God to have mercy on us.

"Do as I say, or you will regret it," the voice threatened.

I was still staring at Vic. He looked pained. We both felt like this every time it happened. Vic never suggested it, but I knew he considered disobeying the man too, just like I did. I could see it in his eyes now, but then the look left, and instead it was filled with sympathy as he looked back at me.

"I'm sorry," he whispered as he came closer.

He leant forward and pressed his lips to mine. I felt terrible, worse than usual. Most days I just let it happen, but I was at the end of my rope. I pushed him away just as quickly as it started.

"I-I can't. Ii can't do it again," I stuttered.

"Do you need a few minutes?" Vic asked in his usual kind and caring voice. His comfort didn't work this time though. I had enough. I couldn't take it anymore.

"A couple of minutes? For what? To be ready? No matter how many times we have to do this, I will never be ready!" I cried. Shock flashed across his face. I had never lashed out at him like this.

"I can't keep doing this," I said, quickly.

My breathing was short and fast, quickening as the seconds went by. I was so emotional and tears sprung to my eyes, flowing down my cheeks. I couldn't stand this any longer. I had snapped. Moving away from Vic, I got up and went to the middle of the room, looking at the camera, knowing that we were being watched and that person could hear me.

"What do you want from us?!" I screamed, "You can't keep making us do this!"

I looked over at Vic. He didn't know what to do. Damn it, where was his motivation to get out of here? I know he's been here for a long time and is used to it, but he's completely given up on even trying to get out of here. I wouldn't get to that point though. What this man was making us do was pure evil and I wouldn't stand for it anymore. I was angry. I lost it.

"You can't do this! We cant...I-I can't be here forever!" I cried. My knees buckled and I broke down even more on the floor. What if I am here forever? What if this is my life now? I flinched when I felt Vic's hand on my shoulder.

"All right, calm down, it's okay," he whispered.

"Its not okay!" I screamed and violently pushed him away from me, "How can you say that everything is okay? Nothing here is okay!"

"Kellin, I'm just trying to help," he said. I shook my head and quickly wiped the tears from my eyes.

"Then help me! Help me get out of here!" I said. I turned and ran up the stairs. I needed to fight back. I could not sit here and let this man control my life anymore. I got to the door and pounded as hard as I could.

"Let us out! You can't just abduct people for your own pleasure, you're sick! Let us the hell out!" I cried, falling to my knees, still angrily pounding at the door.

"Let me out! I want to go home!"

"Kellin! Stop, you'll hurt yourself!" Vic yelled.

"Don't just stand there! Help me! Together we can break down the door!" I said and stood up. With a power that I didn't even know I possessed, I hit the door as hard as I could. Vic grabbed me and dragged me back down the stairs. Why doesn't he want to help me? I fought him, but he held me tight.

"Think about it, Kellin. He's watching us. He's probably standing outside the door right now ready to stop you if we escape. He can hurt us. You don't know what he's capable of!" Vic snapped and to be honest, at this point I didn't care if the man hurt me. He could have killed me for all I cared.

"Let me go! I'm getting outta here!" I cried. I managed to escape from his hands and ran back up the stairs and hit the door again. I tried to pull out the nails of the door to take it off its hinges. I tried everything.

"Let me out! Open the fucking door!" I cried.

My actions were erratic. There was no logic in my head. I just wanted out. I was crying hysterically, beating on the door aggressively. Suddenly there was a click and the door swung open. My heart was pounding in my chest.

"Kellin, get away from the door!" Vic said in panic, but I didn't move.

I wanted to get out, dead or alive. I grabbed the door and open it further. The man was standing there, and I was filled with fear. The angry-looking lunatic grabbed me and pushed me against the wall.

"Leave him alone!" Vic screamed and tried to pull him from me.

The man was stronger though and pushed Vic down the stairs. I watched as Vic fell down the wooden steps. While the man was distracted, I acted, but he was too quick for me. One little movement from me and he grabbed hold of me tighter, his arm around my arms and waist. My eyes widened when I saw a silver needle.

"No no no!" I screamed but he quickly stabbed the needle into my neck.

"What are you doing to him?!" Vic growled.

"This is for the best! This will calm him down!" the man shouted back at Vic.

My mind left me. My body went limp and soon, I was being taken back down the stairs, and I had nothing left in me to stop it. I heard screams, but in my head they were only a murmur. I felt my back being dropped down onto the mattress and through the blurred vision the last thing I saw was the man standing above me.


	12. Chapter 12

It's been six days. Six days since I was sedated. Six days since I saw Vic. Six days since I saw that man. Six days in complete isolation. I've barely slept or eaten. I could feel myself going crazy with every hour that I was in here. I was riddled with guilt and concern about Vic. Where was he? Why couldn't we see each other? What had I done? I had messed up, that's what I had done. I snapped and I lashed out. I had no idea what went on after I passed out. Vic could be hurt for all I know, or worse.

"Please come back," I whispered in a pained voice.

I put my hand on the cold metal opening and curled into a small ball on the floor. Why won't he come back? I needed him. I can't do this without him. The only reason why I lasted so long in here was because I had him here to support me, and now I was afraid I'd never see him again. Every day I would sit here just waiting for him, and every day I became more convinced that he was gone.

I ran my fingers over the contours of the metal, brushing over the lines and dints like I had a dozen times before. I was willing it to open. I needed it to. Mostly I just needed to know. If he's gone then I need to know to put my mind at rest because right now I'm imagining him lying on the cold ground with a lifeless look in his eyes. I'm imagining him having the same fate as those boys in the photos. It would be all my fault if the worst happened to him. I caused a scene and started a problem. I should have just kept obeying that man and then maybe Vic wouldn't have been confronted with him. Who knows what happened while I was unconscious. They could have fought and Vic could have been killed.

I moved away from the opening and weakly crawled over to the mattress. I sat on it, leaning against the wall. I looked around in my paranoia. I swear I heard sounds. I heard talking or banging. Whispering. One night I sat here for hours utterly convinced there were ghosts down here. The day after that I thought that every sound was the police coming to rescue me. I was wrong on both accounts. There was nothing there. I was simply alone.

It was late out, I think. The sun had gone down many hours ago. I had the light switched on because I couldn't handle the darkness anymore. I was in silence, but not for long. The screeching of the metal sheath opening alerted me in an instant. I was sane enough to know that I was slowly losing my mind, so at first I thought I had imagined it. Maybe I wanted it to happen so bad that I conjured up the sound in my head all by myself

"Don't lose your mind, Kellin," I whispered to myself.

I could see it though. I could see the opening. Seconds later the bars lifted too. I didn't make a move or a noise. What if there was a new boy in there? What if Vic was taken and a new boy was in his place? I wouldn't be able to handle that. It would entirely be my fault. I could hear movement on the other side, but no talking. I held my breath, unsure of what to do.

For six days all I've wanted to know was where Vic was, and now I have the opportunity to find out, but I was so scared for the answer. I needed to know though.

"Hello?" I called out in a strained voice.

"Kellin?" Vic's familiar voice spoke back at me.

"Vic?!" I said urgently and stood up.

My heart was pounding hard and tears welled up in my eyes. That was Vic's voice! He's okay! He's alive and he's still here. Happiness flowed through me the second I saw him crawling through the opening. He stood up and our eyes connected; both reflecting each other's relief.

"Fuck, thank God," he said breathlessly and not a moment later we were wrapping our arms around each other in a tight hug. I was basically holding on for dear life. So many emotions were mixed in my head and heart. I was just so relieved that he's okay and so full of joy knowing that I'm not alone. I turned my face into his neck and held back my tears.

"I thought you were dead," I whimpered.

"I'm not," he spoke quickly, "I'm not. I'm right here. I'm okay, we're okay."

He ran his fingers through my hair soothingly.

"I was so scared," I said.

"So was I. I-I thought you had been taken...just like the other boys were," he said.

I could hear the pain in his voice. He had gone through what I had just gone through so I knew he's feeling exactly how I am. I didn't want to leave his arms. I felt so safe and comforted in them. He pulled back slightly though and looked at me. For six days I had longed for him. I just wanted to be near him. My feelings were so intensified in this place and I needed a way to let them out, so I crashed my lips against his.

Who knows if in the real world I would be with Vic like this. The real world doesn't matter anymore. All we have is what happens in these rooms. I think he was a little shocked at first, but then he kissed me back with just as much desire. I needed the closeness after being alone for so long. I wrapped my arms around his neck to keep him there because I wasn't done and I didn't want him to move away. We were both alive and together and that's all that mattered.

I felt so strongly towards him in this one moment. I was confused to say the least. I didn't know whether my feelings were real or just a product of my insanity in here. They felt real though and it was better to cling onto those feelings rather than feeling empty and hopeless all the time. He was all that was getting me through this.

The kiss lasted a long time and when our lips inevitably parted we were both breathing heavily. He stayed close with his forehead rested on mine. He brought his hands up to my cheeks and wiped away the few tears that I didn't even know where there.

"I missed you," he whispered and kissed me again.

It wasn't like the needy kiss I had given him. Instead it was sweet and soothing. I felt like everything was going to be okay as long as he was with me. When he stopped kissing me he turned his head so I followed his gaze and saw him looking up at the camera. Of course, for a minute it felt like it was just the two of us, but we were never really alone. We were both thinking the same thing; what next? Was the man going to make us resume our normal activities? Was he going to make us sleep together? To be honest the notion of having sex with Vic wasn't all that daunting anymore. It was the fact that it would have still been forced by that man which is what made it so horrible.

After a while of just holding each other and waiting for some kind of instructions, we got nothing. I forgot about it quickly, hoping for the best. Maybe he's giving us a break. I looked back at Vic.

"I really thought you were dead or gone," I told him. He nodded in understanding.

"I thought the same about you," he said, "I thought for sure there would be someone new in here. But you're still here."

He affectionately ran his fingers through my hair again. It was okay right now. This felt okay. Slowly his arms dropped, but he still stayed close. I probably wouldn't let him go more than a foot away from me right now anyway.

"You look so tired," he said as his eyes scanned my face.

"It's hard to sleep," I said simply.

Vic looked okay, maybe a little tired, yes, but mostly okay. He's been in here a lot longer than I have been though. He's used to losing the boys. He's better with coping than I am and I envied that. I was a complete mess. I think we balanced each other out though.

"Come on," he said and took my hand. He led me over to my mattress and we both laid down on it. He held me close and I felt myself relax for the first time in a long time. Maybe I could actually sleep.

"What happened in here after I was drugged?" I asked.

"I was mad at the man," he told me, "I pulled him away from you, hit him, then he overpowered me. He said... he said he would hurt you if I didn't go back to my cell, so I did. I went back and then I was blocked off from you and from everything really. I really thought you were gone."

He held me tighter.

"What happened in here though? Did you have any contact with him?" he asked. I shook my head.

"No. I was alone too," I said quietly. I felt anxious all of a sudden.

"There must have been a reason we were separated, right? What if there's something bigger coming. What if something really bad happens?" I asked. My breathing quickened as I started to panic. What if we get separated again? I can't handle this. I can't handle how much my emotions are flying around everywhere.

"Shh, shh, don't think about it," he said and turned his head so he was looking directly at me, "We can't think about that. We have to live in the moment, and right now we're okay. You can't kill yourself with thinking about "what ifs."

"I just don't want to lose you," I whimpered.

As if he just knew it would calm me down; he kissed me. I was still in a state of panic, but I was quickly distracted by his lips. I just focused on him for a few moments until I calmed myself down. When he stopped kissing me nothing else was said on the topic, or about anything really. We didn't have to talk about what just happened either. It's like we both understood what the kisses we shared meant. They were our way of being less alone and feeling less empty. We really did need each other. I felt so safe in his arms, so without the threat of someone coming in here and hurting me while l was asleep, it wasn't long before I drifted off. I needed the rest and Vic being here made it possible. However I was so used to waking myself up because of my fear of everything in here, that I woke up shortly after.

My tired eyes took a while to adjust to the light. Looking up at the window I noticed it was still dark outside. I hadn't gotten a full night's sleep but I felt like I had a few hours. Vic's grip on me had considerably lessened since I was awake earlier. I looked at him, seeing him sound asleep. lt was so weird to feel so relaxed in here, yet at the same time I was on edge and in fear about what might happen.

I sighed and lay there next to him. This is the first time all week that I've felt less insane than usual. A shiver ran through me. We had my one sheet over us, but I was still cold. As I woke up more I realized just how cold it was. I tried to ignore it and just go back to sleep, but I couldn't stop shivering now.

"Damn it," I whispered to myself.

Being careful not to wake Vic, I got off the mattress and stood up, stretching. With the intentions to go and get Vic's sheets to sleep with too, I crawled through the opening and into his room. I went to his mattress and took the blanket. I figured that maybe the pillow would be a good idea too so we didn't have to share one. I picked it up and was about to go back to my room when I heard a pinging sound.

Looking at the ground I saw a flash of silver. I frowned at the object and bent down, picking it up. It was a key. My blood suddenly ran cold as my mind worked a thousand miles an hour. I could see Vic through the opening. He was lying there, sleeping innocently. I focused back on the key. It couldn't be. It just couldn't.

I dropped everything other than the key and stood up. I looked to the door, then back at the key. I felt like I was going to break down again. This can't be what it looks like. It just can't be. Maybe this was a key Vic had with him when he was taken and he kept it with him all this time. Or maybe...maybe it fits the lock to this door. I took a deep breath, knowing that I had to find out.

As quietly as I could I walked up the stairs to his door. I slipped the key into the lock, then turned it. I covered my hand with my mouth to stop the shocked gasp from coming out of it as the door unlocked. Vic had a key? He had a key... The realization of what was happening was quickly dawning on me, but it still didn't make any sense. Vic had a way to get out, but does that mean he's behind this? Why wouldn't he help us escape?

I turned the door handle and pushed it open. It was my first sense of freedom, but it was overshadowed by how terrified I was. In my heart I knew that something wasn't right with Vic. Had he betrayed me? Was he working with this man? I'm missing something here. My whole body was shaking as I stepped out of the basement and looked at my surroundings.

The lights were on and I could see everything. I was in some kind of dining room connected to a kitchen. The walls and floor were made of wood. The house looked like one of those old, but warm and cosy, houses you'd find on a farm. I was too scared to take another step, but I had to. I suddenly longed for Vic to be here with me but the truth was like a slap in the face. He had the key to get out. He was holding us both prisoner. I was so confused.

I turned my head to the side, looking at the yellow wall and an assortment of photographs on it. There was one on there, the biggest one that made me want to scream. Instantly tears ran down my cheeks as the confirmation of Vic's betrayal hit me hard. The picture showed that man who took me, only he wasn't alone. He was with two other boys. One of them looked so similar to me, and the other was Vic. They were all smiling happily. It was like a family portrait. No, no, this can't be happening. This isn't happening!

"Kellin," a voice came from behind me. My heart leapt into my throat and I spun around quickly, taking a step back from Vic.

"Y-you...I...I..." I couldn't form any words. My lips were quivering and I was crying. I trusted him. I trusted and cared for him with everything I had in me.

"Kellin, let's talk about this...please," he said slowly and calmly.

I shook my head quickly. This isn't real. It can't be real. I opened my mouth to speak again but nothing but a sob came out.

"It's okay...you trust me, right? It's still me, Kellin. We can talk, just you and me. Ri-...um, that...man that took you is upstairs. He's asleep and probably won't be up until morning, so we have a few hours to talk, just you and me. Nothing can hurt you, just let me explain," he spoke using that soft voice of his; the one that I used to find so calming and now I felt so sick about it.

He went to say that man's name. He knows him! All this time he's known exactly who he is. Now my mind only had one thing running through it; getting out of here and away from both of them. I had to lie.

"Okay," I whispered and nodded my head in agreement.

I stepped towards him slowly and the sick fuck actually smiled at me. I moved closer, trying to act calm, but then when I was close enough I pushed him with all my strength and he fell into the basement, toppling down the stairs. Adrenaline was running through me as I grabbed the door and shut it quickly and quietly. I turned the lock and then paused, unsure of what to do now. There was only one thing I could do. Run.


	13. Chapter 13

I ran straight out of the house and stopped in my tracks after seeing my surroundings. A terrified whimper escaped from my throat. It was dark but the moon was bright and in every direction I could make out that there was nothing but bush land. Where was I? I had no idea where to go and I didn't have time to think logically, so I picked a direction and ran.

A sense of freedom washed over me when I was running away from the house, but I knew that I wasn't in the clear yet. Tears were still running down my cheeks. I couldn't believe that Vic was behind all of this. I trusted and cared for him more than I had anyone in a very long time. Nothing made sense to me right now. All I knew was that I had to get out of there. There had to be a road somewhere, right? I was brought here in a car, so there must be some sort of tracks, but I was too scared to turn back and find them. I just needed to get out of sight before Vic escaped or before that other man Woke up.

I was now in survival mode. I had to push the betrayal away and focus on myself. I reached the woodland and hid behind the first few trees. I looked back at the house. There were lights on on the first floor. The second floor was pitch black. It was situated in the middle of a field; a field which was surrounded by trees. Maybe there's another house nearby, or I can find a main road. I just need to find someone with a phone so I can call the police.

I suddenly wished I had stayed for a moment longer and searched for a cell phone, or even taken a knife to protect myself if they found me. I wasn't thinking straight. It was too late to go back though. After catching my breath, I turned and kept running further into the woods. I was terrified, not only because I had two men that were after me, but also because it was dark and who knows what dangers lurked in the shadows.

I had no clue where I was going but it was better than being locked up. I've never been a very athletic person so I struggled to pump my legs faster. No matter how scared I was I wouldn't stop. I couldn't. I was free and I planned to keep it that way.

Vic'S POV:

"Kellin!" I screamed as loudly as I could. I bashed on the door in a panic. This can't be happening. He can't have gotten out! How could I be so fucking stupid!?

"Kellin! Please! We can talk about this if you just let me out!" I shouted.

I got no response and there was no doubt in my mind that he had run. Why would he do this to me? I thought that we shared something special. I thought we had this connection. I would never just abandon him like this.

"Rick!" I screamed loudly, but I was well aware that he wouldn't be able to hear me.

I went back down the stairs and paced around the room, trying to calm myself down. He can't have gone. He can't have. But he was. We were in love! He knows that, surely. Maybe he'll come back. Maybe he's just scared and confused. We were in love and now he's gone! Just like... just like him...just like Dylan. Gone! No, no, no!

"Rick! Wake the fuck up!" I yelled at the camera.

The one time he's not being a creepy fuck and not watching us, and this happens! I collapsed to my knees with my head in my hands as flashes of the past entered my mind. I can't lose someone I love again. It'll break me. I need to wait until Rick wakes up to get out of here. I need to find Kellin. I need to bring him back to me, back to where he belongs.

Kellin'S POV:

The day was long and the sun was harsh. I was running for hours, stopping every so often to regain my strength. I hadn't had a proper night's sleep or a decent amount of food and water for so long. I was weak and dehydrated. My white shirt and shorts clung to me as sweat poured out of my skin. I kept willing myself to go on. As night approached I was thankful that the temperature went down, but once again I was scared. I had been out here for so long. I could have been running in circles. There might not be any sign of civilization for miles.

My running had long ago slowed down to a walk. I stopped to regain my breath. I leant against a tree, begging God to make it rain so I had some water, but I had no such luck. Earlier I had searched for some sort of river, but I found nothing. The trees and ground were dry. There was no sign of water anywhere. I collapsed on the ground in the dirt and rolled onto my back to look up at the quickly darkening sky.

For a moment, just a moment, I was calm. I was free, but I was beginning to wonder how much longer I could last out here with no food or water. I haven't seen any sign of civilization since I first ran. My body was weak and shutting down. Maybe I could just rest my eyes for a moment. I savored the brief time of relaxation. I could feel by heart pounding through my mostly numb body. I can't stop, I have to go on.

With whatever strength I had in me, I got up and continued walking in between trees and shrubbery. As the sun disappeared, fear rose in me. I'd have to spend a whole night in the darkness if I don't find help soon. I walked for hours until I came across a dirt road. Hope bubbled away inside of me. This road would have to lead to a main road or a town, surely.

With my sudden renewal of energy, I traveled down the road. I was in pain. My legs were killing me, not to mention I wasn't wearing shoes at all. My feet were cut and bloody. My skin was filthy from trekking through the woods. I would have killed for a nice, cool shower now. Soon, I would reach that goal soon. I would find help. I would get out of here. I would be okay.

I was looking at the ground when I saw light. I thought I was imagining things at first until I heard the sound of an engine. I spun around quickly and in the near distance I saw the headlights of a car. I panicked and ran back into the woods. Yes, it could have been help, but I was so paranoid that it might also have been Vic or that man. I couldn't risk getting caught, and so I kept running further into the woods, although with my feet in such a bad condition it was more like hobbling quickly.

The sound of the car got closer and I turned around to watch it. It came to a stop near where I had just been. I was completely frozen. Had whoever it was seen me? I heard a door open, but I couldn't see anything in the darkness.

"Kellin!" Vic's voice called out. I covered my mouth with my hand to stop the scream of terror. I hurriedly dropped to the ground and hid behind a tree.

"I saw you, Kellin. I saw you run in here!" he shouted.

My body was shaking. Tears were begging to escape. l was frozen on the ground behind the tree in fear. Please just go away. Please. I kept willing for him to give up and leave but I heard his shoes crunching along the dried leaves on the ground.

"I'm not going to hurt you. You've been out here all day. I want to help you. I need you to come with me, please," he pleaded with me.

Liar. He was a liar. He could so easily speak in that comforting tone, but I knew it was a lie. He has nothing but bad intentions. I stayed quiet, trying not to breathe loudly which was proved to be a difficult task when I was on the brink of sobbing. 24 hours ago I trusted him so much. All wanted was to be in his arms, but now it was like an entirely different person was talking to me.

He got closer and closer. I had a decision to make. I could fight back, or I could run. I went with option two. Before he could get any closer I leapt off the ground and ran as fast as I could, ignoring the pain shooting through my feet.

"Leave me alone! Please!" I screamed but didn't dare look back.

"You can't outrun me, Kellin! Don't make this more difficult than it has to be!" Vic shouted.

I kept running, and he was right, I couldn't outrun him. He caught up and latched onto my arm. I spun around and in my hysterics I hit him across the face.

"Stay away from me!" I screeched and managed to push him away. I tripped over a branch and fell back. He loomed over me and I knew it was futile, but I still tried to get away.

"Trust me, I'm not going to hurt you," he said in a kind tone.

"Liar!" I screamed. I shuffled back and started crawling away. He grabbed hold of my shirt and pulled me back.

"Please don't!" I cried.

I dug my nails into the ground. I tried holding onto trees, anything, just to keep away from him. He pulled me up and wrapped his arms around my waist. I kicked and screamed. I threw my arms around in a fit of rage. My utterances were incoherent through my crying and screaming.

"It's okay, I'm taking you home where it's safe," he said.

He was stronger than me, especially when my body was so weak from being out here so long. I was no match against him. He dragged me back to the car even though I put up a struggle.

"Rick, the door," he said.

"No, no, no! I'm not going with him. Please don't make me go with him," I cried.

When I looked at the car I saw the man, Rick, standing there looking calm with the door open. Despite my pleas, Vic still forced me into the back seat. I lunged across to the other door and pulled on the handle violently, but it wouldn't open. Turning back, I saw Vic get in after me. I lashed out, trying to hit him.

"You sick fuck! Let me go! You can't do this!" I screamed.

He put his arms around my body and arms tightly so I couldn't move. I kicked my legs, but it was doing nothing to help me.

"Shh, it's okay. It's okay, Kellin. You're upset now but you'll be okay," Vic whispered soothingly in my ear.

I cried harder as the realization hit me. I wasn't free, and I would never be free. They were taking me back and they'd never let me out, or they'll kill me. I don't want to die!

"I told you we should have brought sedatives," Rick said from the front of the car as he started it. I kicked the back of his chair as hard as I could in my anger.

"We don't need them," Vic assured him.

"Please... please let me go. I won't tell anyone what you did. I just want to go home," I whined.

"We are taking you home, to our home," Vic said. I could feel his breath against my ear and it made me want to throw up.

No matter how much I cried or begged for them to let me go, they wouldn't. I was hysterically crying, screaming and swearing the whole way back to the house. When we got back and Vic took me out of the car, I tried running again, but to no avail. Vic single handed took me back into the house and across to the basement doors.

"Please don't put me back in there. I don't want to go back in there," I cried.

"It's just for a little while until you calm down and then we can talk," he said calmly.

I tried to get away, but he opened the door and pushed me inside. I dropped to my knees as he slammed the door shut and I heard the flick of the lock.

"No!" I screamed against the door.

I fell into a fit of sobs. I collapsed further down onto the small platform at the top of the stairs and curled into a ball. I was back, and I was more alone than ever.


	14. Chapter 14

I stayed on the ground crying for a long time. I was in emotional turmoil; the kind that paralyzes your entire body. I felt like I couldn't move, even if I wanted to, which I didn't. It hurt, it really, really hurt. I wish I could say that after everything I was numb to it, but I felt every little thing. The worse it got, the worse I got. It was a never-ending anguish.

Everything I thought I knew in this place turned out to be a lie. The rug got pulled out from underneath me when I least suspected it. My only source of comfort was now my enemy. He had brought me back here even though I so desperately begged to be let go. The Vic I thought I knew would have helped me escape. I thought he was my ally. I thought we were going to get out of here together. Oh how wrong I was.

I couldn't believe I never caught on to his deceit. I had no idea why he would do this to me. I don't know why he would want to hurt me like this and betray my trust. He tricked me and I fell for it all. I felt like a fool. It felt like my heart got clawed out of my chest and set on fire. It felt like nothing would ever be okay anymore. Emotions don't work the same in here as they do in the outside world. You don't need someone as much in the outside world. Everything is magnified tenfold in here. In the real world you're never forced into a situation where your only means of survival is to cling onto one emotion; love.

I wouldn't go as far to say that I loved Vic, but my feelings towards him were intense. Were. Not anymore. Not like that. Now I hated him with every fibre of my being. On the outside world if you were betrayed by someone, sure, you'd be upset, but you would move on with life. In here it's like my life had stopped. It was suspended in time. In here my life only consisted of myself, Vic and Rick. Vic was the only positive, so that betrayal ruined me to no extent. In here it's like the end of the world. In here nothing is okay.

I slowly pushed my weak body up from the ground but didn't stand up. I looked at the door with tears still messily streaming down my cheeks. There was no doubt I looked awful. I was covered in dirt, sweat and a small amount of blood on my hands and feet. I didn't care about the state I was in though. I was too upset to care. I was more preoccupied with asking myself over and over again what I had done to deserve this.

"How could you do this to me?" I choked out. A sob escaped my throat as I spoke again, "H-how? Why?"

He probably couldn't hear me but I needed to say it. I needed to let it all out. I wasn't even angry right now, I was upset.

"I trusted you! You raped me!" I was surprised by the pain in my voice as I drowned in another fit of sobs.

He forced me to have sex with him numerous times. All those times when I sought comfort in the fact that we were going through it together was meaningless now that I knew the truth. He was doing that to me on purpose. He did that to me on purpose and let me think it wasn't his fault. He was sick. I leant against the wall, bringing my knees to my chest and wrapping my arms around them.

I rested my head on them and continued bawling. I silently begged and pleaded for that numb feeling to take over my body because I couldn't handle this anymore. Finally though, that feeling did come. I cried until I couldn't possibly cry anymore, and after hours and hours of wallowing in self-pity, I felt numb I stared at the wall in front of me and tried to think about anything else. I thought about the color of this particular wall and how I didn't like it. It was an ugly color. It was made of brick and was dark brown. It reminded me of the color off a coffee table my mother once owned when I was nine. I remember scratching the varnish off for no reason at all and getting grounded for a month. It was perhaps a bit harsh of a punishment, but right now I longed to be that nine year old boy again whose only problem was being grounded.

As the sun came up and shone through the window, I decided that I still hated the color. It worked. Thinking about something else, no matter how trivial, worked in calming me down, and I was calm for hours, just staring at that wall. I barely moved an inch since I sat up. My eyes felt dry and tired but I didn't want to sleep. It felt like a bolt of electricity went through me when I heard a sound that snapped me from my daze.

I didn't move though as the door was pushed open. I didn't even look up. Since I was sitting in the way, the door only opened about a quarter of the way. I still didn't move for whoever it was to open it completely.

"I'd like to talk now. Do you think you can come out and be calm?" Vic's voice asked.

I didn't answer him. I considered my options. I wanted to know why he did this. No, I needed to know. I needed to know why he pretended to care about me. Just, why? I ended up reluctantly nodding my head. I shakily got to my feet. Stretching out my body felt so good, but I was still aching really badly.

Once I was up he took hold of my arm. My first instinct was to flinch away. He gave me this look that silently told me not to worry. Yeah, unlikely. I didn't like the feel of his touch anymore. I shrugged him off again and he let go willingly. He gestured for me to walk out the door, but when I looked down at his hands I saw the glint of a metal blade. I let out a gasp and impulsively stepped back. I lost my footing and felt a brief moment of weightlessness before he latched onto my arm again to stop me from falling.

"Whoa, wouldn't want you falling. I know how much it hurts to fall down a flight of stairs," he said with a chuckle. Did he really just make a joke about me pushing him down the stairs? I tore my arm away from him and stepped back on the steps.

"You don't need to be so aggressive towards me, Kellin. I don't want to hurt you. I care about you," he said and raised the knife, "This is just a safety precaution,"

A safety precaution? For himself, of course. There was nothing safe about this situation for me. I didn't respond to him at all. I looked at him with pure hatred in my eyes. This was so surreal. I wasn't used to hating him. He was a completely different person to me now. Again, he gestured for me to walk through the door, and so I did. I avoided touching him at any cost and walked past.

I was met with the same dining room that I saw yesterday. Everything looked the same. I eyed the kitchen, wondering if they kept any sharp knives in there. Surely they would. I'd just have to get there, but with Vic holding a knife of his own, I knew I couldn't act out right now.

"This way," he said and walked by me to the hall.

I had run through it yesterday to get to the front door, but this time I didn't go all the way down the hall. This time I went with him through another doorway that led to a quaint looking living room. I stopped in my tracks when I saw Rick standing in the middle of the room. I couldn't decide who I hated more; Vic or Rick. Rick seemed like he was magnitudes worse than Vic, but Vic's betrayal hit me hard.

"It's okay. Take a seat," Vic said as he walked further into the room.

He stood next to Rick, both of them in front of the couch. Vic pointed to the piece of furniture and I looked at it suspiciously. I wanted to stand, but I was also too afraid of these two men to not do what they wanted, so I cautiously sat down and looked up at the two of them.

"How are you feeling?" Vic asked.

I couldn't fathom why he thought that was a good question to ask me right now. He was acting so casual about the whole situation. It was as if he hadn't hurt me at all. Maybe he's just cold blooded. After it was clear I wasn't going to answer, he spoke again.

"This is Rick," he officially introduced me, "He's my father-in-law."

My jaw involuntarily dropped. His father in law? My mind was running wild. So, Rick had acted like I was his son, so that means in this sick, twisted game of his Vic was supposed to be my boyfriend? Or husband? No, he was the husband of Rick's son. Yes, that was it. I was just confused. I couldn't quite piece it all together. I was still in shock and I hadn't slept for so long that my mind wasn't working properly. It hurt to think so much.

"And, what...you're working with him?" I asked incredulously then harshly added, "You sick bastards." I was no longer numb to it all. I was angry and upset again.

"Don't," Vic spoke quickly. He had a look of hurt on his face, "Just...don't, don't say that. I'm not sick."

I couldn't believe I was hearing this. How could he actually say that he's not a sick creep? And Rick, if Vic was anything like Rick, which I'm positive he is, then he's definitely sick.

"Don't say that? What?! The truth!" I shouted.

"Calm down," Vic said calmly.

He was so calm and collected, and so was Rick. They were looking at me in a condescending way, as if me acting out wasn't the right thing to do. What did they expect me to do? Did they expect me to be okay with this?

"Calm down!? Do you know what he does to people?!" I screamed and pointed at Rick.

Confusion flashed in Vic's eyes and then I realized something. Rick told me not to tell Vic what happened in the bathroom that day. He didn't want Vic to know what he really got up to. Vic had no idea.

"What do you mean what he does?" Vic asked curiously.

Rick's eyes widened and he shot me a glare. My mind was suddenly so up to speed. Vic said he didn't want to hurt me, right? He said he cares about me. Well, let's see just how far his devotion really goes.

"He told me not to tell you what he did that day he dyed my hair," I started. I was completely ready to try and turn them against each other.

"You watch your fucking mouth!" Rick barked, pointing his finger at me and taking a step closer. Vic turned to him, glaring viciously.

"Don't talk to him like that!" Vic shouted.

He turned back to me, trying to look calm but he actually looked quite pissed off. Turning them against each other was already working. In a sick, twisted way, Vic had some sense of commitment towards me and I would exploit that

"What are you talking about?" Vic asked firmly.

"He showed me pictures... pictures of him beating and raping other boys," I told him. A look of shock and confusion crossed Vic's face and he looked back at Rick who looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"You did what to them!?" Vic screamed, "You were supposed to let them go! You were supposed to threaten them so they wouldn't say anything and then let them go!"

Vic spoke with such rage, but I was confused. Vic is a rapist himself, why would he be so angry about this?

"He's lying!" Rick roared accusingly.

"He touched me," I added fuel to the fire, "He took my clothes off and he touched me while touching himself."

Yes, it was white lie. He had barely touched me, at least not in that way, but Vic didn't know that. Vic's eyes turned deadly as he glared at Rick. I had never seen a look more full of hatred in my life.

"You touched him like that? He is off limits!" Vic shouted.

"He's lying, Vic! Who are you going to believe?" Rick asked.

"Please, Vic. I was so scared. I'm still so scared to be around him. He said that he was going to have sex with me one day," I lied.

"I will kill you if you don't shut your mouth!" Rick yelled and then he lunged at me.

My eyes widened and in a panic I tried to get up, but he was too quick. His hands latched around my throat as he strangled me.

"Get off him!" Vic ordered and tried to pull him back.

Rick was too strong though. His hands had completely cut off the flow of air into my lungs. I clutched at his wrists, trying to put him away. His nails dug into my neck and I tried pleading with Vic for help but it was useless. I could barely make a sound. I was looking into Rick's murderous eyes. Would they be the last thing I see? Black spots appeared and I thought for sure I was going to pass out and die.

Suddenly his grip around my neck loosened and as I refocused I saw why. I gasped and almost screamed. Vic had plunged a knife into Rick's neck and was pulling him back. Blood instantly splattered on my clothes as it poured out of the wound. I looked down at the stains in complete shock. I didn't know what I was trying to accomplish when I turned Vic against Rick, but I wasn't expecting this. Vic threw Rick to the ground and stood back, breathing heavily. He himself looked shocked at what he just did. I looked down at Rick who was choking on his own blood while he slowly died. I was at a loss for words. Did that really just happen?

"Are you okay?" Vic asked, but I was stunned into silence.

Rick stopped gasping for air and soon he was dead, or passed out, I don't know. That was more traumatizing than I would have thought. A sense of satisfaction washed over me though. I was glad to see him hurt, or, I guess, dead. But I was still so shocked, and sick to my stomach.

"Are you okay?" Vic repeated.

I looked up at him. He just killed his father-in- law for me. Did that change anything? Of course not. It just confirmed that for whatever reason, he wanted me alive. I didn't answer his question. He looked back down at Rick's body. He seemed flustered.

"Back to your room," he said in a shaky voice. After I didn't move straight away he grabbed my arm and lifted me from the couch. All I could do was walk with him back to the basement. He opened the door, lightly pushed me inside, then closed the door, locking me in there alone.


	15. Chapter 15

I was half way between consciousness and being unconscious. I'd feel my eyelids slowly close and I'd be overcome with the amazing sensation of falling asleep, only to force myself awake again. I'd be alert and looking around in a panic, only to find that I was the same place I had been for hours, sitting down huddled in the corner of the room.

Vic had left me in here for a while. I had no idea what he was doing out there and I had no idea when he was coming back. Maybe I should just give in and go to sleep. I was too afraid that something might happen when I'm sleeping. Just when I was about to lay down, the door opened. I looked up with wide eyes as Vic started down the stairs. He had killed Rick. Was he planning on killing me next?

"Relax, Kellin. I won't hurt you. I need you to come with me, but you have to behave," he said. I didn't make a movement. I was shaking, partly because I was cold and partly because of the fear running through me. When he got to the bottom of the stairs he kept walking closer.

"Get away from me," I said in a raspy voice. Vic looked down at me, sighing.

"When have I ever hurt you?" He asked.

"Oh, I don't know, how about when you forced me to have sex with you?" I accused.

He frowned and shook his head. He crouched down in front of me. He was giving such a kind look but it didn't make me feel better.

"Oh, Kellin, you misinterpreted that completely. You might not have understood at the time, but you will eventually. That was making love," he explained. I felt like throwing up.

"You're sick," I spat out. He ignored me.

"I'm going to take you upstairs and we're going to talk properly," he said definitively.

"No," I refused.

"Yes. Trust me, you'll feel better in the sunlight. We can go and sit outside and have a nice talk. I'll tell you everything you want to know. Every little thing," he said.

I looked him in the eyes. He looked like he was telling the truth, but then again he had lied to me so easily for weeks. What if he's lying now? I don't have anything to lose anymore though, right? It was either sit down here and waste away, or I can go up there and get the answers I so desperately wanted.

Without a word I pushed myself up from the ground. He reached a hand out to help me but I swiftly moved away. I didn't need or want his help. He accepted that before turning and walking up the stairs. I followed him, keeping my distance. I noticed his clothes were different. I was so used to seeing him wearing the same white ones I wore, but now he was dressed casually in a grey t-shirt and dark blue jeans. Glancing down at myself I took note that my clothes weren't so white anymore now that they were covered in blood and dirt. It was disgusting, but it was the least of my problems.

I followed him out of the basement, then he took me down the hall and opened the front door. I squinted as the bright light hit my eyes. It was either the middle of the day or mid-afternoon, I wasn't sure. I stepped out onto the patio. To one side there was a mini-garden, to the other there was a small table and three chairs surrounding it.

"Take a seat," Vic told me.

He went over to one himself and sat down. I eyed him suspiciously. He wasn't holding a weapon anymore. That led me to believe that he either thought I wasn't a danger anymore, or that knife this morning had been to protect us from Rick. Maybe Vic didn't want to hurt me at all. I couldn't believe I just thought that. Am I really trying to think the best of this man? Whether he wanted to hurt me or not, he's still a horrible person. He's still sick and disgusting. I still hate him. I sat down on the chair furthest away from him and waited for him to speak.

"So, what would you like to know?" he asked.

"Everything," I said straight away.

"Everything?" he questioned. I nodded my head slowly. I was desperate to find out the truth.

"Yes. I want to know everything...from the beginning," I said.

"Okay... I guess I should start by saying that my name is Vic Fuentes. That man I killed, his name is Rick Williams a-"

"Where is he?" I interrupted.

"I buried him, far away from here," he told me, practically emotionlessly. In fact he didn't seem bothered at all that he killed him. When it actually happened he looked shocked at what he had done, but now he seemed fine I just nodded and waited for him to continue.

"Rick had a son. His name was Dylan. He was a little older than you. I met him when he was doing a tour of the college I went to and we hit it off straight away. It was the type of love that hit you hard and fast. It wasn't long before I was asking him to be mine forever. My family never approved of my sexuality, so when I told them I was getting married they completely shunned me. Rick however, well, he was okay with it, and quickly took me in as one of his own. It was summer last year when Dylan and I decided to tie the knot, well, sort of. It was illegal for us to get married, being gay and all, so we had a small commitment ceremony with Rick and a few of our friends. We didn't have the piece of paper saying we were married, but to us, we were. Now, at this stage in our lives we had been living here with Rick for a long while, and we didn't have the money to go anywhere for a honey moon, so we jus had it here. On the very first night I took him up to our room and w-"

"Is this necessary for the story?" I interjected quickly. I didn't want to hear about what happened on his wedding night. It made my stomach churn.

"Yes, please be quiet while I get this out. It's hard enough to talk about it without getting interrupted," he said. I had barely noticed that it was hard for him. I had very little compassion towards this man. I did shut my mouth though and waited for him to continue.

"Anyway, like any newlywed, we consummated our marriage by making love. Only...the thing with Dylan and I was that, well, we could get a bit carried away sometimes. We were into...all sorts of things. Things that I'm not into anymore and that you don't need to know about. But...I..." he stopped talking and kept his eyes glued to the table. His eyes seemed so lifeless in this moment.

"I killed him," he said in barely a whisper.

My jaw dropped in shock. He killed him? I hadn't really thought of my own theories of what happened to this person, but I didn't think that it was Vic who killed him. I thought maybe Rick, or maybe it was like a car accident or a medical condition, but I didn't think murder. I don't know why it hadn't crossed my mind before.

"I didn't mean to," he choked out, "My hands...th-they were around his throat like I had done so many times before, but it went too far. One minute it was all fun and games and the next he wasn't moving or breathing. And I tried to resuscitate him, Rick tried but...he was gone."

By this time Vic was crying. I was sitting here with chills running through me. He killed him. The ounce of empathy in me felt bad for Vic. He accidentally killed someone he loved and he looks really hurt about it. But my hatred for him trumped that. It was hard to feel sorry for someone who had violated you over and over again. I waited a little while for Vic to calm down. Eventually he had and could continue on with the story.

"Um...I should probably tell you about Rick. He's...sick," he said simply. I wanted to tell him that he was sick too. Mentally sick? Maybe. Maybe he has some sort of mental illness that made him like this, or maybe this is really just who he is.

"One day I needed to borrow his laptop because mine wasn't working, but he wasn't home at the time, so I just decided to take it. I didn't mean to find what I did. It wasn't like I went snooping, but I did find it. There was video upon video of me and Dylan. It turns out he had hidden cameras in our room and was filming us having sex. When he came home later that day I confronted him. I wasn't mad, mostly l was confused. He sat me down and we had a really long talk. He explained to me that watching us was the only way he could deal with his urges," he said and stopped, frowning. It was like he was reliving that time. I was seeing each emotion crossing his face; anger, sadness, disgust and confusion.

"Urges?" I questioned, scared of the answer. Vic looked me in the eye and without skipping a beat he said something that made me want to be sick.

"He wanted to have sex with his son," he said bluntly. It felt like bile had come up to my throat. It didn't get much more sick and twisted than this.

"Him filming us, watching Dylan, it was what he needed to keep himself under control. I think he had some sort of sexual disorder, I don't know, but I went along with it. He wasn't hurting anyone and I was afraid that if I made him stop then he'd go after Dylan, and Dylan loved his father, like any son would. It would have killed him if he knew the truth, so I never told. Besides, part of me actually got a thrill knowing that someone was watching us," he explained.

Sick, just sick. I couldn't think of another word for it, but then something clicked in my mind.

"So...you had sex with me for him? So he could watch us?" I questioned, my own tears threatening to spill out. Vic shook his head quickly.

"No, no, we did that for ourselves. We did that to express our feelings for one another," he said.

"Our feelings? I didn't want that!" I cried. He looked at me condescendingly.

"Calm down, Kellin. Let me continue with my story," he said, completely ignoring that I was really distraught about this. I stayed quiet, and he continued.

"Anyway, Rick had been watching us, so he had it on film that I killed Dylan. At the time he didn't know it was an accident. Before I could explain anything he had raced out of here and gone to the police. He never showed them the tape though. He couldn't because then they'd know he was a sick creep filming us. He just told them that he saw me do it. I knew I was in trouble, so I fled. I ran as far as I could, just like you had, only I went in the right direction. I made it to the road, I found a bus stop, and I got out of here. I was wanted for murder, but obviously I was never caught. After about a month, I came back. I needed to confront Rick about what happened. I told him it was all an accident and he believed me. He said that after he had gone to the police he realized what a huge mistake he made. He forgave me, and then he kept me hidden here from the cops," he explained.

He paused, waiting for me to let all the information sink in. It was quite a story and a lot to comprehend. It was insane.

"Both of us were in so much grief about what happened. We both loved Dylan so much, but he was gone. I wanted him back so bad. It was unbearable, really, truly unbearable. Rick went crazy, like really insane. He kept saying how he wanted his perfect family and how it isn't complete without Dylan. It all happened so quickly and the thought process was a mess, but we both missed him much. We missed what our lives were, and so we came up with this plan. Well, his plan and my plan, they were different. He wanted to take boys and keep them locked up, but as part of our family. He just wanted that, that's all. He wanted a replacement son. I on the other hand was a little more realistic. I had my own plan which had been going well with you so far," he told me. That raised another question.

"Why me? Why out of all the boys did you choose me?" I asked.

"Because, Kellin...you're special. With the other boys I didn't quite have the connection I had with you. It took a long time to find the right person, but I know you're him," he said.

"But I'm not him," I said forcefully, "I'm not Dylan and I never will be."

"I'm not crazy. I know that you're two completely different people and the love we share is different," he said. Love? He truly is delusional. He doesn't even know he's crazy

"Can I continue with the story now?" he asked. I merely nodded before he continued.

"Okay...so taking boys, it became something that helped me cope. It made me feel less alone, and even became a sort of game that would only end when I found you. Trust me when I say I didn't want to hurt anyone. Rick was supposed to bring a boy here. The boy would have no idea where he was and he'd have no idea what Rick looked like. I was supposed to see if I connected with them, and when I didn't, Rick was supposed to drug them again and drop them back off in their town with no recollection of where they had been. But, I guess Rick hadn't been doing that. I didn't know what he had done to the boys," he said, and even though he was an evil fuck, I truly thought he was being sincere.

"Why did you pretend to be locked up too?" I asked.

"Because, that was my plan...Me and whichever boy was in the adjoining room, we were supposed to fall in love. He was supposed to find comfort in me. Rick didn't know my whole plan though. My plan involved clearing my name. I'll take you and me for example. We were at the point where you trusted me and fell for me," he said and I wanted to correct him and tell him that I didn't fall for him, but I stayed silent as he kept talking.

"The plan was that I would somehow break free and kill Rick. Rick thought that the whole time I was supposed to make you fall in love and then tell you the truth, and then you'd be okay with becoming his new 'Dylan'. I knew that wouldn't work though. I didn't want to stay here for the rest of my life. So I thought that if I killed Rick, then we could have escaped together. We'd go to the police and tell them that Rick had kept me held hostage and that he was the one to kill Dylan. And then I'd be free, we'd be free. I would have asked you to run away with me and of course you would have said yes. We could have had our happy ending," he explained.

This was all so complicated and so drastic. He was truly insane; that was the only word to explain it. It took a long time for me to understand everything, but I had a question.

"That doesn't make sense though. I would have found out that you knew Rick before you were locked up. I would have found out that you lied," I said.

"Yes, and then I would tell you that he forced me to lie. I'd say he would have killed me if I didn't go along with it," he said.

I can't believe that he conjured up this whole crazy plan. I was trying so hard to understand it though. It was his grief, his total lament, of losing this Dylan person that drove him to doing this. I wanted to feel sympathy, but I couldn't. He had done too much to me. I was all a part of his insane plan. I needed to convince him to let me go.

"You're mentally ill," I told him, "We can go into town and they'll get you help, Vic. You won't get put into jail. They'll send you to talk to someone and they can diagnose you and give you medicine."

"No!" he practically shouted. A second later he looked calm again, "No, Kellin, I'm not mentally ill. I know exactly what I'm doing. I know that right now I'm in love with you, and I'm not stupid. I know if we leave and I turn myself in you'll never talk to me again. We have to stay here where we can be a family."

"A family?" I asked in anger, "Is this what you call a family!? Keeping me locked up!? Hurting me!?"

"Shh, sweetie, it's okay. You'll see one day that this is the right thing to do. I know that you love me deep down. We're going to be together forever," he said. I shook my head as tears fell down my cheeks.

"I want to go home, please. If you love me you'll let me go back to my family," I said. He slowly shook his head.

"You know I can't do that. You're not going anywhere, Kellin," he spoke, and I knew that was a promise. I was never getting out of here, ever. I was stuck with this complete psycho. The only comfort left was knowing that in that sick, twisted mind of his, he apparently loved me, which means he won't kill me. Then again, he loved Dylan and killed him. This was all so fucked up.

"Look at you, you're filthy. Let me get you all cleaned up."


	16. Chapter 16

The thought of a shower practically had me salivating. I was in a disgusting state to be honest. I thought that Vic was going to send me back to the basement again, but instead he led me through the hallway to another set of stairs that led to the upper floor.

"Why aren't you taking me back?" I asked in a panic. He stopped, let go of my arm and turned to me.

"Because you know the truth now and Rick isn't a danger anymore. You can live up here with me," he said. I shook my head quickly.

"No, I want to stay down in my room," I told him.

I 100% wasn't okay with Vic keeping me here, but the reality was that he was keeping me here. I couldn't change that, at least not yet. I had to figure something out. But in the mean time I was stuck here and I didn't want to be living up here with him. I wanted to be by myself. I didn't want to be anywhere near him.

"Don't be ridiculous. We're going to be a family, me and you," he said.

He grabbed my arm again and I pulled back, but he just held me tighter and kept pulling me upstairs. I just couldn't believe this. Now I was being forced to be a "happy" family with him. I was terrified. What would he make me do with him? It was best to do what he says though. I saw what he did to Rick. He was his family and he disposed of him so quickly. I couldn't risk making him angry right now. It would be so easy for him to just kill me and go find another boy.

So, I walked with him up the stairs. Photographs littered the walls; all of them included Dylan. They all looked so happy together, and mostly, normal. That was the scary part about it. They seemed so normal and now this is what has happened. We got upstairs and went through another hallway. To my left there were two doors, same with my right. Straight ahead was a door right down the end of the hall. Vic took me to one on the left. He opened the door and inside was a bedroom. It was light and open. The walls were a light, beige color. The floor was carpeted and white. There was a bed situated against the wall in the middle of the room. The bed had clean, white sheets on it. Bedside tables were on each side. On one side there was a lamp, on the other was an empty photo frame. A thought suddenly crossed my mind.

"Is this where you killed Dylan?" I asked. He stopped, looking at me with a steely gaze. To my relief though he slowly shook his head. No. Good. I couldn't stay somewhere that someone was murdered.

"Through here," he said and took me to an adjoining door.

We were in a bathroom now. It was a different bathroom to the one Rick had taken me in. This one had a little color to it. The walls were a light green and the towels hanging on the towel rack were light blue. There was a tub with a shower. I was more interested in the mirror in here. I wondered if I could smash it and use the glass as a weapon.

"Well, take your clothes off then," Vic said. I looked at him in disbelief.

"I can shower by myself," I said. Vic smiled and shook his head.

"No, you can't. Unfortunately I don't quite trust you to be alone," he explained.

"W-Well then lock me in the basement to shower and then let me out when I'm done," I suggested. I was starting to panic. I couldn't be exposed around him; not now that I know what his true intentions are.

"Kellin, take your clothes off," he said firmly while giving a stern glare.

He really did scare me now. It was such a huge change to when I used to find comfort in him. I couldn't get used to this. Again, I had to do what he says or he could really hurt me, so with much reluctance I slowly took the stained clothing off. Vic smiled in approval and turned to turn the shower on. I was shaking and felt like I was going to break down being naked next to him. It was humiliating. Steam surrounded us in the room. Vic held his hand under the water to test the warmth. He then looked back at me, still smiling.

"I can shower myself. I get that you don't want to leave the room, but please just...don't touch me," my voice quivered. Any moment now and I was going to start crying. This was too much in one day.

"Don't be silly. I want to look after you. Now, get in. Come on, we can't waste precious water," he said.

Funny, he was worried about the environment of all things. I took a deep breath, knowing that there was no way to argue with this man. The quicker I get in, the quicker I can get out, so I stepped into the tub and let the water hit me. I wish I could have relaxed. Yes, it felt really good to watch the dirt wash away, but I couldn't enjoy it with Vic watching me.

He came closer but didn't step in. He picked up a washcloth and the soap, then proceeded to clean me. I felt like a five year old who was incapable of doing it himself. I couldn't fight what was happening. I just had to stand there and let him do it. He started with my arms, paying extra attention to my hands which were all cut up from dragging them along the ground. He was very gentle. It was astounding that this gentle person could have done such horrible things.

"You have such nice skin," he told me, "You're very pale, but it's like porcelain."

I didn't say anything. He kept going, cleaning my body. I was surprised to find that there was nothing sexual about it. He was just cleaning me. Even when he washed over certain areas, although I cringed and felt like crying, he was quick. He got to my face last and tenderly wiped the dirt away.

"I like your eyes," he said with a smile.

Still, I said nothing. I just wanted this to end. He finished cleaning my skin, then picked up a bottle of shampoo and washed my hair. Vic made me turn around so he could wash it easier. He pulled me towards the water again so it could rinse out. After that, he turned the water off, made me get out, then towel dried me. I just wanted to get some clothes back on. My back was to him now, but I saw him in the mirror.

"You really do have such a beautiful body, Kellin," he said softly and I felt him run is fingers along my back. A cold chill ran through my body. There had been nothing sexual about this up until now. Both hands lightly grasped my hips and pulled me back.

"Don't," I said quickly and turned around. I backed into the counter looking back at his frowning face.

"What's wrong? I just want to be close to you," he said. Close? Close how? I was panicking on the inside, but frozen on the outside. I had been through too much in one day to have something else happen. He stepped forward. I couldn't move back any further.

"I love you, Kellin." He said and took my face in his hands. He planted his lips on mine and I turned my head away.

"I don't want to do this," I whined.

"Sure you do. You're just a little nervous," he said.

He was more forceful this time when he held my face and kissed me. I tired pushing him away but he was so strong. I managed to turn my head away again, but that didn't stop him. His hands dropped to my hips to my cheek. I put my hands on his chest and pushed. I couldn't do this right now. I really couldn't.

"Please Vic, please don't," I pleaded.

I tried pushing more but he wouldn't budge. He wouldn't take no as an answer. Is this what my life would be now? Him always forcing himself on me? No, I couldn't deal with this, but he wouldn't accept a 'no', so I tried something else.

"Vic... I-I'm so tired, you know? I mean... I haven't slept for so long. Do you think I could get some rest?" I asked. I was trying to sound as polite as possible. He pulled back a little to look at me.

"We can rest afterwards," he said. The way he talked was like he was always happy or peppy. Back in the basement he would talk so casually, like a normal person. Of course, that was all an act. Now I could see how psychotic he really was. I could hear it in his voice.

"Please, I really don't want to do this. I'm not ready," I said. I never would be ready, but I had to leave him with a sense that we would do this eventually. I couldn't give an outright "no" because he wouldn't have accepted it. My heart was racing in my chest, just hoping that he'd stop touching me.

"Well...I understand, I guess," he said. I looked at him in surprise.

"You do?" I asked.

"Of course. This is all new to you. You're just nervous, and scared, but you don't have a reason to be. I love you and I want to be with you in every way possible, but I get it that you haven't quite accepted that yet, but you will. We'll do this when you're ready," he said. I was just completely shocked that he said all of that.

"Really?" I asked. He nodded happily.

"Of course. We're together now so we have to make compromises to make each other happy," he explained.

I just slowly nodded. I wasn't going to argue more now that I had won. Vic gestured for me to follow him, so I did. We went back into what I guessed was his room. He opened a set of drawers and found some clothes. They were the same ones I had been in my entire stay here.

"I hope you don't mind these clothes. I just...I really like you in white," he said and handed them to me.

I wondered what was so special about me and white, and then it suddenly clicked. He killed Dylan on their wedding day. Weddings. White. That made sense. It was fucking creepy though. I put the clothes on anyway, glad to not be exposed anymore.

"It's still a bit early, but I can see you're really tired, so we'll go to sleep now," Vic said.

"Can I have my own room?" I asked. I knew it was a long shot, but it was worth a try.

"Uh, no? That makes no sense," he said. He opened the drawer of the bedside table and pulled out a pair of handcuffs.

"What are they for?" I asked quickly, stepping back.

"Relax. They're for you. I can't have you running away in the middle of the night now can I?" he questioned, "Now, come here."

All I could do was obey him and step forward. held my wrist out and he locked the cold, metal handcuff around it. He led me to the bed and closed the other around one of the bars. He looked at me expectantly, so I got on the bed, lying down. To my displeasure, Vic got on too, lying next to me. He moved closer and wrapped his arm around my waist. I quickly turned my back to him. I didn't want him anywhere near me. I just wanted to be away from him. I would rather be locked back up in that basement by myself. I was too exhausted to cry myself to sleep. I was too exhausted to push Vic away from me. So I laid there feeling numb and just let him hold me while I fell asleep. One last thought lingered in my mind before I slipped into unconsciousness; I was going to going to get out of here tomorrow.


	17. Chapter 17

I had fallen asleep when it was light out, so when I awoke and it was still light I was confused as to whether I only slept a couple of hours, or if I had slept so long that I had woken up the next morning. I felt groggy and tired still, but my body felt relaxed. I guessed it was the next morning. I was alone. When I rolled over and looked around the room Vic was nowhere to be seen.

I sighed and stared up at the ceiling. This whole situation was so bizarre. I was handcuffed to a bed with a psychopath roaming around somewhere. I was constantly scared, but in a way calm because Vic kept saying how he loved me and didn't want to hurt me, so I don't think I had to worry about that. I was worried about him possibly raping me though. I don't think I can put it off much longer, although he did say we could wait until I'm ready. He's a fucking lunatic though. He could snap and hurt me in a second if he wanted to. Right now though I think I'm safe around him. I just need to find a way out of this place. Before I could sit up and look around to search for something, anything, to get me out of here, Vic showed up in the doorway.

"You're awake," he stated, smiling bright. I kept my gaze away from him and simply nodded. His mere presence made me so depressed.

"I was just about to wake you up. I made you a nice breakfast to welcome you to the house," he said. He walked over to me and took a key out of his pocket. He unlocked the cuffs and I instinctively massaged my sore wrist.

"Oh, did it hurt you through the night? I'm sorry, but this is all just a precaution. Maybe one day when I trust that you won't run away, I'll you take it off during the night," he said.

He took hold of my wrist and brought it to his lips. He softly kissed the red marks. He made my skin crawl. I refrained from looking at him in disgust or yanking my hand away. I had to act nice for now. He eventually let go of my arm and nodded to the doorway. He turned and I followed him out of the room.

"What's in those rooms?" I asked pointing to the other doors. The more information I get about this place, the better.

"Those two," he said, pointing at the two across from us, "One was my old bedroom. The other is a spare one that was converted into a study since I was in college and Dylan was quite the studious boy himself. The one down the end of the hall is Rick's room. I had never been in there before I killed him. I found some things in there. You were right about what he did to the other boys. He was...he was crazy. Sick."

That was pretty rich coming from him. Vic was just as much a lunatic as Rick was. Okay, maybe not as much. I could have been stuck here forever with Rick and I knew that'd be 100 times worse than being stuck with Vic.

"Enough about him though. Come on," he said.

I followed him down the hall and the stairs. When we got to the dining room and kitchen I could smell bacon and eggs. Only then did I realize just how hungry I was. I could barely remember the last time I ate. It was a surprise I even had the energy to walk right now. My stomach felt hollow and I knew I was a lot less healthy than I should be.

"Sit down and I'll bring it out," he said.

I did as I was told and sat down on one of the chairs around the dining table. In front of me was a plastic knife and fork. I could probably still do damage with them, but not much. Could I even make a move? It seemed too risky, besides, my stomach was controlling my thoughts right now. I didn't even want to accept his food, but when he placed it down in front of me I simply placed it down in front of me I simply couldn't resist. He sat across from me with his own food and smiled. I looked down at the plate and started eating slowly. I admit, it was really, really good. I glanced up at Vic every now and again who was digging into his meal faster than I was. I guess that even though I was starving, I still didn't have much of an appetite.

"Could I have something to drink? Like, water?" I asked timidly.

"Of course," he said cheerily and got up.

A moment later he was back with a glass of water which he placed next to my plate. I took a sip and when I put the glass down I realized something. He had given me glass. I stared at it, contemplating my options.

"It's so nice to have someone to eat with," Vic interrupted my thoughts, "Rick always kept to himself, so it was usually just me. I mean, you and I ate together sometimes when we were in the basement, but it's not really the same as sitting across from someone at a table though. This is nice."

I looked up at him. The only thoughts going through my head was how crazy he was. He was perfectly content with playing happy families. I continued eating, slowly filling my stomach to the point where I was comfortably full.

"So, today I was thinking we can just hang around and talk, you know, just like old times in the basement," he said. I simply nodded.

"You're not much of a talker, are you?" he questioned. I glanced up, not saying anything just to prove his point.

"That's okay. You'll warm up to me soon," he said.

Unlikely. He finished his breakfast first and went to the kitchen to wash off his plate. My mind and body worked so quickly. Sure, I was hesitant at first and I knew this was a risky idea but I was desperate, so I had to act on it. I needed to get out of here. I couldn't just sit back and wait for bad things to happen I grabbed the glass and poured the remainder of the water out on the table, not caring about the mess. Vic was at the counter with his back to me. I had to move quickly before he turns back around.

I got up and ran to the kitchen. It was a surprise attack and I wasn't even too sure what I was doing. l smashed the glass on the counter, making the edges sharp and jagged. I lunged at Vic just as he turned around. The glass cut up his arm as we toppled over onto the floor. I was on top of him and I pulled my arm back to get enough force to stab him. When my arm swung back down his reflexes were quick enough to block me.

"Kellin! What are you doing?!" he shouted. I screamed something incoherent. I was filled with nothing but anger and desperation. I needed to kill him. I went to stab the glass into his neck but he was too strong for me.

"Kellin stop!" he yelled. It was easy for him to overpower me. He rolled me onto my back, getting on top of me.

"I fucking hate you! Get off of me!" I screamed.

He yanked the glass from my hand and in a rage threw it against the nearest wall where it shattered. I hit at his chest, trying my best to fight him off, but I was weak against this man.

"That's it, get up!" he roared. He stood up, roughly pulling me with him.

"Let me the fuck go you sick fuck!" I spat, "Don't you understand? I don't want to be here?! I don't want to be anywhere near you! Get your fucking hands off me!"

He ignored my pleas and took me up stairs. I struggled the whole way. He was angry, really angry. We got back to his room and he picked up the handcuffs. I thought he was going to cuff me to the bed so I could calm down, but instead we left his room again. We went down stairs and straight out the front door. He picked up a set of keys on the way out.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked.

I was no longer in a fit of anger, instead I was panicking. Still, he said nothing. We went around the side of the house to where a car was. It was the same car he and Rick used to find me the other night. He unlocked the doors and pushed me into the back seat. He tightly latched the handcuffs around my wrist and the door handle. He then slammed it shut. I desperately tugged at the handle but the door must have had child lock on it. Vic went around to the front and got in.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked again.

"Somewhere to teach you a lesson," he said heatedly.

He started the car and speedily drove away. I was filled with anxiety. Was he going to kill me? That was the only thing I could think of. Surely he wouldn't take me home. We drove far into the woods. With every second I got more afraid.

"Vic..." I started. He glanced up at the rear view mirror, looking at me, then back to the dirt road. I continued, "I'm sorry I tried to hurt you. Please, let's just go back."

His eyes narrowed into a glare. He was still angry. He didn't answer me either, just sped up. I started whimpering and crying. Oh God, I'm going to die. He's going to kill me. I'm never going to see my family again. Never. Eventually he stopped in the middle of the woods. I looked around urgently. Is this where it would happen? I felt like hyperventilating. This can't be the end of my life. I want to live!

Vic came around to my door and opened it. He unlocked the handcuffs and forced me out. He had a tight grip around my upper arm as he led me through the woods. He was going to kill me here, I know it. He'll kill me where no one will ever be able to find me. We stopped when we got to a certain point and Vic pushed me onto my knees.

"Do you see that?!" he shouted.

Through tearful eyes I looked at the ground in front of me. At first I was just confused because all I saw was dirt, but then I saw it. There were two long patches of dirt that was different to the rest. The dirt had been dug up and...

"Oh my God." I cried, clamping my hand over my mouth.

They were graves. Two of them. He had buried people here. I broke down even more. I would surely be the third.

"I wasn't completely honest when I said I wanted all of the boys to be let go. There were complications with two of them. They didn't know how to behave. They were trouble and I was forced to kill them. Do you want to end up like them, Kellin? Do you?!" he yelled.

"No, no. Please don't kill me, Vic please don't," I begged through hysterical sobs.

"I don't want to kill you! I didn't even want to kill them! But if you ever try to hurt me again then this is exactly where you'll end up! In an unmarked grave where no one will ever find you!" he screamed.

All I could do was cry. My head was throbbing and I felt physically ill. This was insane. He not only murdered Dylan and Rick, but also these two other boys. He was a murderer: a cold blooded murderer. He dropped to his knees next to me and I moved away instantly. He could still kill me. He was going to. I was sure of it. I looked up at him. He no longer looked angry, but instead concerned.

"You will be good, won't you?" he asked, "I don't want to lose you. You're my favorite, Kellin. I love you. So please, promise you won't try to hurt me again."

I nodded quickly, "I promise. I promise."

All I could do was agree. If I wanted to save my own life then I had to agree to it all. I couldn't try and kill him again. I wanted to, but I couldn't, and if I did try then I'd have to be smarter about it.

"Okay, thank you. Get up," he said. I shakily got to my feet. He came closer and took my hand, "I'm sorry I scared you with this, but you needed a reality check. Now, come along, we can go home now and be happy."

I nodded slowly. He took me back to the car. I was shaken up and upset, but I was alive. But how long could I stay here until it gets to the point where I don't even want to be alive anymore?


	18. Chapter 18

A few days had gone by since Vic threatened my life. I was too scared to even so much as look in his direction. I was like a zombie; on autopilot and doing whatever he wanted. He didn't hurt me and only ever touched me in an affectionate way, never sexual or violent. Things were calm and I felt dead inside, but nothing bad had happened in those days.

Vic liked routine. Every day we would wake up, he'd make us breakfast, we would eat together, then we'd have "quality time" together where we would talk, which basically consisted of him talking and me half paying attention. After that he'd make us lunch, we'd eat, then we'd do some cleaning, or maybe play a board game or read something. Next came dinner, then we'd shower and go to bed. I spent every moment with him and although he was nice, I still hated him with everything in me.

Right now we were sitting on the couch. His arm was around my shoulder and he was holding me close. Things were kind of tense since I had attacked him, but he was still all smiles and acting loving towards me. Every time he touched me though I just felt sick. I was less focused on his touch at the moment and more focused on the television in front of me.

This is the first time he's let me watch TV I didn't even care that it was some pathetic daytime soap opera that was on; it was still something to distract me from him. Something happened though that made my heart leap into my throat. A commercial break came on, but instead of commercials it was a news update. At first it was the usual major things happening in the world. I didn't care much for it. Most of it was political, but then a reporter came on screen and I saw my house, not only that, but my parents standing outside of it. My jaw dropped and my eyes instantly filled with tears when I saw the broken look on their faces.

"Today marks the end of the 4th week since eighteen year old local man, Kellin Matthews, has gone missing. I'm standing here at his family home with his parents," the reporter spoke before he turned to them, "How are you two holding up?"

I ripped myself from Vic's grasp and clambered down in front of the TV. There they were, right in front of me yet so far away. So many emotions were flowing through me. I was happy to see them, but I was in so much despair knowing that I couldn't be with them. My mom started crying and my dad held her. No, I didn't like seeing them like this.

"Kellin," Vic said in a warning tone.

He showed up standing next to me and went to turn the TV off. I grabbed his hand to stop him and looked up with pleading eyes.

"Please just let me watch, please," I said. He sighed and reluctantly stepped away. In an instant my eyes were glued back to the television.

"It's been tough. Every day that we don't know where he is gets worse. We miss him and his friends miss him. We just want him back," my dad answered.

"Have there been any breakthroughs in the case?" the reporter asked. My mom, still unable to answer, buried her face in my dad's shirt while he kept talking.

"Unfortunately there are still no leads. The police aren't able to prove whether he was taken or if he ran away," he said and my stomach dropped.

It didn't sound like they were close to finding me at all. Vic switched the TV off before anything else was said. I was left there crying on the floor. Oh God I missed them so much. Being here had me constantly feeling homesick. I hadn't yet come to terms with the fact that I might not ever talk to my parents again. I couldn't bear the thought. Just seeing them again hurt so much. I couldn't stand it.

"Please, Vic...I want to go back to my family," I said, looking up at him.

"I'm your family now," he said defiantly. Something just snapped inside me.

"No you're not!" I screamed in anger, "They are! They always have been! You never will be."

"I am!" he shouted with such a rage that I found myself instinctively moving away from him, "We are a family! I am your husband and you are mine!"

"No I'm not! I'm not yours! I hate you. I hate you so much! I could never love you, ever!" I shrieked. The words just came out and while I was saying them I knew they were stupid. It was stupid of me to lash out at him again

"Yes you are!" he roared.

"I hate you!" I screamed again. He stepped forward and grabbed my arm, pulling me up from the ground.

"Oh what now, huh? Are you gonna threaten me again? Gonna show me more people you've killed?" I asked with an attitude. He dragged me upstairs, just like he had the last time we fought.

"No, I'm going to show you that we're in love!" he shouted.

Right, how the fuck could he possibly show me that? He took me into his, or our, bedroom and flung me onto the bed. He was on top of me in a second with his lips attached to mine. It quickly clicked in my mind what he meant. With all my strength I pushed him off of me.

"No, not that! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" I apologized straight away.

"I've been patient with you, Kellin, but I can't wait any longer. You don't even realize that we're in love and I know this'll make you realize it," he said.

He straddled me so I couldn't move my lower body and he pinned my wrists to the bed. He leant down and kissed my lips. I turned my head to the side and tried pushing my arms up but he was a lot stronger than me.

"Get off of me! Please don't do this!" I pleaded.

He rolled his hips against me. I felt nothing but disgust. He kissed my neck and kept grinding into me. I struggled against him and he pulled back, looking annoyed. He got off me and easily pulled me further up the bed then got back on top.

"Fuck you, Vic!" I shouted.

He let go of one of my hands. Even one handed he still managed to over-power me. He took the key for the handcuffs out of his back pocket and picked the cuffs up from the bedside table. He grabbed both of my hands again and as much as I tried to stop him, he put both of them above my head and locked them around the bars so I couldn't defend myself anymore.

"Leave me alone, please just go away! Please!" I begged. I can't believe he's going to do this. Once again he was kissing my lips, cheeks and neck.

"Sit still!" He growled. I continued wriggling around to stop him. I felt through his jeans that he was hard. That's the moment I started sobbing harder. He sat up and undid the buttons and zip on his jeans. I shook my head quickly.

"Don't, don't, don't, please don't. You said you'd wait until I was ready! You said you'd wait! Please Vic, I don't want to do this. Please, if you really love me you'll stop." I said desperately. He looked down at me lovingly.

"Oh Kellin, it's because I love you that I can't stop." He said.

He climbed off of me and stood up. He pushed his jeans down. Oh fuck, this was really happening. He took his shirt off so he was now fully naked. I sat up and crawled away as much as I could, but I knew deep down it was no use. There was no stopping this psychopath. He opened the bedside table drawer and took out lubricant. I whimpered, trying to get further away. He got back on the bed and grabbed me. I ended up kicking him in the stomach, but that didn't deter him. He latched onto my shorts and literally ripped them off, and pulled off my underwear. He grabbed my thighs and pulled me back into a laying position.

"You don't have to do this," I said tearfully, "I realize it now, okay? I love you! I really, truly love you, Vic. See, I understand that we love each other so we don't have to do this. We can one day when I'm not so upset, I promise."

"You're lying," he said simply, "Lay still." He ordered.

I couldn't do anything to stop it. All I did there was lay there and cry as he assaulted me. He didn't seem to care. He thought this was the right thing to do. For some reason, there was a tiny part of me that thought he wasn't capable of this, but how naïve was I to think that there was a sliver of goodness in him?

When he was done, he didn't move from on top of me. All I wanted was his body away from me. He pushed himself up, looking smug and satisfied. He unlocked the handcuffs. As soon as I was free I leapt up, grabbed the shorts and tugged them on, then I ran. I knew I wouldn't get far but I couldn't be here. I just wanted to run.

I ran down the stairs with Vic calling after me. I went straight out the house and ran towards the woods. I went in a different direction to last time. I could hear Vic yelling behind me. I glanced behind to see him running from the house and doing his jeans up. I faced forward and kept running.

"Kellin, please wait!" Vic called out.

He was catching up quickly and I knew it was no use to continue running. I stopped and dropped to my knees, crying. Vic caught up to me, immediately wrapping his arms around me from behind.

"It's okay, Kellin. You don't need to be upset," he said in a soothing voice.

"Don't touch me!" I screamed.

He held me tighter though and eventually l gave in, my body going limp in his arms. I cried hysterically while he held me. He kept whispering over and over that it was okay. But it wasn't okay. What just happened was by far the worst thing that had ever happened in my life. I can't remember ever being at a lower point before. I just wanted to escape. I just wanted to die.


	19. Chapter 19

The days turned into weeks, two to be precise. Two weeks since I saw my parents on TV I still wanted to die after everything that Vic had done to me, but there was one thing that kept me going, my parents. They missed me and they wanted me back. I would hang on for them. The look of heartbreak on their faces was the only reason I hadn't tried to kill myself in here.

Vic promised to never have sex with me again unless I wanted it. I think it finally got through to him how much it hurt me when I spent the whole rest of that day crying, and then the week after I would flinch every time he went to touch me. I told him that he reminded me of Rick, and he looked really upset at that statement, so that's when he made the decision to wait until I was ready, which of course, would be never.

I would never forgive him for what he did. If ever did get out of here then I knew I'd be messed up for life. We went back to our normal routine; breakfast, talking time, lunch, more hanging out, dinner, shower, bed. It was the same thing every day. It was tiring. I don't know how I had stayed sane. I should be sitting in a corner, rocking back and forth, but I wasn't. I was learning that I was actually a pretty headstrong person, despite how much I cry.

It was about the middle of the day now. Vic and I just had lunch together and then he brought me to our room. He got the handcuffs and locked one of my wrists to a bar. I sat on the bed and looked up at him questioningly.

"I have to go into town to pick up some things, like food and stuff," he said. I don't know why this hadn't crossed my mind before, but of course he would have to leave at some stage to get supplies.

"How do you go into town when you're wanted by the police?" I asked. They were the first words I had spoken to him since that day he raped me. He looked at me a little surprised, but then answered.

"I don't go to any stores. I go to houses and borrow some things," he explained.

"Steal. You steal things," I said. He sighed and nodded.

"Yes, but it's either that or get caught. Plus, I don't have any money," he said. He bent over a little so he was eye level with me.

"So, you just stay here and be good for me, alright?" he asked. I didn't answer. He leant forward for a kiss but I turned my head to the side. He sighed and stood up straight.

"You'll come around soon, Kellin. I just know it," he said.

Once again I didn't say a thing. He was wrong. I'd never love him. I'd never so much as consider him a friend ever again. He was all I had in here and now he's all I never want.

"I'll see you later. I love you," he said.

I didn't say it back, obviously. He left me alone after that. It was the first time that I had been truly alone in this house. It was eerily creepy. I laid back on the bed. There wasn't much to do in here. I soon fell asleep because really, this was the first time I've been safe. When he's not here, I'm safe, so I was able to securely fall asleep for a little while.

When I woke up there were no signs of Vic being here. The sky had darkened a bit. I wondered where he was. Maybe I'd get lucky and he'd get caught by the police. That was wishful thinking, but it was something I thought of for a while. I sat there daydreaming about him. being captured and the police coming to find me. I thought about him being thrown in jail and me being reunited with my family. The thoughts made me sad though. It just made me miss home.

I started thinking about my faith. I had lost my way while I've been here. I used to pray every night, but not in here. A lot of my friends thought my dedication to Christianity was ridiculous. They thought I was kind of nerdy with it, but they would be surprised if they saw me now. It was hard to continue being the goody two shoes boy I once was when I've been put in this situation.

I attempted to kill Vic. That was wrong, but what else could I do? In here being a civilized person wasn't an option. I felt guilty, yes, but it had to be done. I did however miss the comfort that religion gave me. I always found God to be a good support, but in here I had barely thought about that. I hesitantly got off the bed and knelt on the floor as best I could with the handcuffs on. I clasped my hands together and closed my eyes, then I started to speak.

"I know I haven't done this in a while, but guess it's never been the right time. I don't even know why I'm bothering because I know nothing is going to get me out of this mess. I mean, I've been here for six weeks already. I'm never getting out. So I guess what I'm praying for is for you to watch over my family. Make sure they find some sort of closure. I don't want them missing me forever. I don't want them to be sad. I just want them to be okay," I said. I felt myself starting to get emotional. I choked it back though and continued.

"I ask you to please let Vic see the error of his ways. He's really sick. I know it's some kind of mental illness. I hope that one day he gets the help he needs. In no way do I forgive him for what he's done but sometimes I feel like he doesn't know any better. As much as I hate him and want him gone for good, I'd rather he be cured from whatever sickness is in his head," I said.

I took a deep breath. It felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders just saying this out loud. I had no one else to confide in so even though there was probably no one listening it still felt good.

"As for me... just help me find strength to get through this. I-,"

"What are you doing?" Vic interrupted me. I turned to look at him in the doorway.

"Praying," I said simply.

"God's not real, you know?" he asked. I frowned.

"Yes he is," I argued.

"If he's so real then why would he take away good people?" he asked. I wanted to tell him it's so sick, disgusting people like himself are left with nothing, but I held my tongue.

"No one knows how he works," I said softly, turned away from him and put my hands together to finish my prayer in silence.

"Get up. Stop praying," he ordered me.

"No," I said simply. What was so bad about praying? I wasn't hurting anyone by doing it. He took away my innocence. I won't let him take this away too.

"Yes," he growled. I looked at him, glaring fiercely.

"This is important to me!" I shouted. He stormed over and grabbed my arm. He pulled me up and made me sit on the bed.

"It shouldn't be! No one is going to help you! God is not going to help you! Where has he gotten you so far, huh?!" he shouted right back.

I shouldn't have let his words get to me, but I did. I sat there, pondering them. I wasn't going to let him take my faith away from me, but he did have a point. No one was going to help me. If I'm going to get out of this mess then I have to take matters into my own hands. I really have to dig deep and find the strength myself.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you. It's just that... you don't need anyone other than me. You don't need a God. We just need each other. So I don't want to see you talking to some imaginary person again," he said.

I didn't answer him at all. I couldn't deal with people who are narrow-minded. If someone doesn't believe in God, then fine, I can understand that. I'm not trying to force it upon him, in the same way that he shouldn't try to take it away from me.

"Please talk to me," he said.

"I don't want to. You upset me," I said truthfully.

He looked annoyed and frustrated, then he just turned and stormed out of there. I sat there, still annoyed with that whole conversation, but I felt different. I had been so dead inside for a while now. I had more or less given up and just succumbed to this life, but now I suddenly felt different. I wanted to get out of here.

I wanted to see my family again and get away from Vic. I can't sit around waiting anymore. I need to do it myself, but this time I need to do it the smart way. I can't keep being so aggressive towards him no matter how much I want to be. Aggression only leads to him being aggressive towards me. I need to gain control of the situation. And how do I gain control? I become friends with the enemy.


	20. Chapter 20

Playing nice with Vic shouldn't be that hard, right? I mean, that's what he's wanted all along. He's wanted me to like him, so all I'm doing is giving him what he wants. I felt sick to my stomach about it though. I knew that I'd be faking it, but it would still be difficult to pretend that I liked him. It was the day after we had our mini argument about religion. I hadn't spoken to him, which really wasn't much different to normal. I knew I had to soon though to give off the impression that I like him.

Right now we were sitting on our bed. I wasn't handcuffed. He didn't need me handcuffed when he's here to supervise me. I was reading a book he had given me and he was sitting across from me at the other end of the bed doing a crossword puzzle. I felt his eyes on me and I looked up.

"What?" I asked. He looked a little unsure of himself before he spoke.

"Are you still mad at me because of our argument yesterday?" he questioned.

I wanted to make him feel as guilty as possible, but that wouldn't get me anywhere. I just shrugged and mumbled an "I don't know."

I looked back down at the book, but out of the corner of my eye I saw him get up and leave the room. It was really uncommon for him to leave me alone and me not be handcuffed, so I figured he would be back soon, and he was. He walked to the edge of the bed near where I was sitting.

"Here," he said. I looked up at him to see he was holding a book out towards me. It wasn't just any book though. It was the bible. I hesitantly took it from him. He was giving me a bible

"This has been here for years. I'm not sure where it came from...but you can have it if you want. I figured you might like it," he said.

I just looked at him, a little confused at his kind gesture. He clearly hated the idea of God, yet he was giving me a bible. He pushed aside his feelings about the topic to make me happy. I had to remind myself again that he's still the sick freak who kidnapped and abused me.

"Thank you," I said softly.

"Anything for you," he said with a smile.

Yeah, anything except letting me leave. He went back to his spot on the bed and continued with his crossword. My gaze didn't leave him. Sometimes he seems like such a normal person. Here is someone who has murdered people, raped me and was downright insane, yet he was doing a crossword puzzle like a normal person.

It was horrible what he had been through and I understood that that could lead to insanity, but it still didn't excuse what he did. The whole situation just made me sad because if it weren't for him accidentally killing Dylan then he'd probably be a normal person. He'd be living a normal life with his husband, yet here he is a complete lunatic.

"Kellin?" he said. I just realized he had been watching me too.

"What?" I asked.

"You were staring," he said.

"Oh, sorry," I muttered and looked back down at my book. When I still felt his eyes on me I looked up at him again This time I gave a small, forced smile.

"I like your smile. I rarely see it," he said.

I just smiled again. Who knew that smiling could be so painful? Vic closed his crossword book and tossed it on the floor, then crawled over to me. He took the book from my hands, closed it, and set it on the bedside table. My heart rate quickened. I was scared about what he was going to do next. I wasn't stupid. I knew that being nice to him would have consequences and he'd want to do things with me. I had mentally prepared myself for it all last night. I prepared myself for it all last night. I didn't think it'd be this soon though.

He leant over me and pressed his lips to mine. I froze. A battle was going on inside my head. I could push him away and he'd know I still hate him, or I could go along with it. Every instinct in me was telling me to fight him off, but that wouldn't help at all. I needed to make him trust me. I needed to get him to let his guard down around me, so I needed to do this and I had to pretend to like it.

I reluctantly kissed him back, moving my lips in time with his. He suddenly pulled back, looking surprised. Had I messed up? Did he sense that I didn't want this? The look of surprised disappeared though, then he smiled and crashed his lips onto mine again, kissing me passionately.

It was really hard to kiss him back like I meant it. It felt so wrong doing this. I felt sick. This was the man who forced himself on me numerous times before and now I was giving him exactly what he wanted. The only thing getting me through it was thinking of the end result, knowing that once this was over he would trust me so much more and then one day he might leave me unsupervised and not handcuffed, ready to escape.

He put his hands on my hips and pulled me away from the bars of the bed so he could push me onto my back. He was on top of me, situated in between my legs. I deserved an Oscar for how convincing I was with this kiss. I wrapped my arms around his neck as his hands roamed my body. It took everything in me not to run out of there crying. Vic moved his body up and down on mine. He rubbed himself against me and I could feel the bulge poking into me, but that wasn't surprising, the surprising part was that I felt this hot tingling sensation through my entire body. I pushed him away quickly because the feeling freaked me out. I wasn't supposed to enjoy that.

"What's wrong?" he asked, looking into my eyes.

I didn't have anything to say. Vic smiled though and trailed his hand down my body and slipped it into my shorts. He fondled me and I gasped. I was actually getting aroused. It was like my body was betraying me, but I had to just tell myself that it was natural to get this reaction from someone touching you, even if you're disgusted by them. It was still so confusing though.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Mhm," I mumbled quickly.

Maybe it's true what they say about men and only being able to think with either their brain or their penis at the one time. Vic, still the smiling assassin, leant down and kissed me again. I wanted to get this over as quickly as possible so I brought my hands to his jeans and undid the buttons. Vic was getting really into this, and here I was trying not to throw up. It was difficult. He was touching me and on the one hand it felt really good. Part of me wanted to let go and enjoy it.

He then shuffled down my body and took hold of the hem of my shorts. He kissed my hips and once again I felt that hot tingling through my body. He pulled the shorts down and off, leaving me exposed. I wanted to cover up but I forgot about that in an instant when I felt his warm lips against me, and then I was inside his hot mouth. This was something I had never experienced before. I gasped and held back a moan. Tears escaped from my eyes because I hated myself from actually liking this. I wiped them away quickly before he noticed. I just needed this over. This whole pretending thing was more difficult than I thought.

"Vic...please," I whispered.

I wasn't sure what to say. It wasn't like I had been in a position before where I was having "consensual" sex. I guess he understood that I wanted to hurry this along though, because he took me out of his mouth and came back up to plant a quick kiss on my lips.

"I don't know what's gotten into you, but I definitely like it," he said.

I gave him a fake smile.

"I just...I need you now, and quick. Please hurry," I pleaded.

This made him smile wider. He leant over to the bedside table, opened a drawer and took out the lube. My heart was pounding so hard I was surprised he hadn't heard it. I had to hold back the anxiety and keep on smiling. He connected his lips to mine again. He grinded himself against me and again it felt really good. Every motion was so robotic though. Please just hurry up, please get this over with. It was as if he could sense my silent begging because he moved along quickly.

Even though I didn't want this, I still felt like this was consensual sex. I felt like what I was doing was wrong. Even if it were back in the real word I'd still feel wrong. I'm going to hell.

"Are you ready?" Vic asked. No.

"Yes," I replied with fake eagerness.

He smiled and kissed me, and before I knew it, he was inside me. I felt sick. I felt really, really sick. I just had to keep telling myself that it'll be over soon. I hated this. I wanted it to be over. My mind was doing a good job at blocking out any type of feeling other than hatred. I had even managed to convince myself that this didn't feel good, but then with one thrust into me everything changed.

I found myself liking how it felt. He stopped kissing me and looked into my eyes. I looked back at his and suddenly all I could focus on was how good that felt. Maybe it had been so long since anything felt good that I just latched onto this one feeling.

"Oh my God," I panted.

My body was on fire. I shut my eyes tightly because I couldn't look at him while this was happening. He kissed my neck repeatedly, sending shivers through me. He groaned in my ear and I loved it. I loved the sound. The feelings were hitting me hard and fast. It was unlike anything I had ever felt before.

"Kellin," he growled in my ear and nibbled on it.

I whimpered as my muscles constricted and I simply couldn't hold on any long. A wave of pure ecstasy flooded through my body and I was moaning loudly. I had never felt anything so intense before. Moments later he was grunting and stalling inside of me. I knew exactly how he felt just then. It was an unbelievable feeling It had all happened so fast and soon he rolled off of me and we both lay there, catching our breaths. As I came down from the pleasure induced high, I came back to reality and it hit me hard.

I opened my eyes, suddenly becoming aware of my surroundings and the entire situation. The guilt hit me like a ton of bricks. I actually just did that, and I found that I enjoyed it. I sat up quickly and looked at Vic who was laying there looking thrilled. I couldn't be in here right now, so I stood up.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Um, shower," I replied quickly. I felt dirty. It was wrong. It was so, so wrong.

"Okay, door open. You know the rules," he said, and I did know the rules.

He let me shower alone but the door had to be open. I was really quick to walk into the bathroom and turn the shower on. The quicker I got clean the better. I had to wash the shame off. I stepped under the running water and hastily washed everything off. I cleaned myself as quickly as I could, practically scrubbing off a layer of skin.

I looked back into the room at Vic. He was barely paying attention to me. I turned back away from him, and cried while I had the chance. I just let it all out now because once I go back in there I'm going to have to keep this charade up. I'm going to have to continue playing happy families. It was so difficult and I hated myself. I wasn't supposed to enjoy that as much as I did. I was supposed to hate it, and in a way I did, I really did, but in the end I forgot who I was with. I forgot that it was wrong and disgusting and instead I was just so engrossed in what was happening. I truly hated myself.

"Kellin? You've been in there a while," Vic called out to me. Had I been? Time was a concept I couldn't quite grasp in here.

"I'll be out in a moment," I said.

I took some deep breaths to calm myself down and stop the tears. I'm stronger than this, I know I am. I've been through so much. I just managed to have sex with him and convince him that I wanted to. The plan was going well so far. He would trust me in no time at all. I just had to hang on, no matter how hard it is, I need to hang on.


	21. Chapter 21

Vic had barely even questioned my motives after I slept with him. It had been two days and he didn't say anything. He just seemed really happy that I was showing affection towards him. He was so convinced that we were meant to be together forever that he was blinded from the truth. He trusted me. He was delusional.

I wasn't game enough to try much else yesterday. I didn't want him to get suspicious of me so I kept my distance a little, plus I was overwhelmed with what happened. I was ashamed with myself and didn't want to go anywhere near Vic unless I had to. I knew I had to keep up the charade though.

Right now we were sitting on the couch watching a movie. There was a small space in between us and I had been sitting here for the past half an hour trying to get the courage to make a move. Every time I decided that I would I'd get disgusted in being near him. I sighed and did it though. I moved closer and laced my fingers with his.

It was such a simple thing but to me it was like I was giving in to what he wanted. I was scared because it might lead to sex again, and I don't want that. I can't handle that. Not again.

"I love you," Vic said. I looked over at him. He was looking at me like he was expecting me to say it back. Just say it It's easy, right?

"You love me too, don't you?" he asked. Was he finally getting suspicious with me?

"Of course I do," I lied.

He quickly smiled, believing what I said. He was so gullible. He's truly insane. He leant in and kissed my lips. He was quick to deepen it, and in turn I was quick to reject him. I pushed him away lightly.

"I, uh, I really like this movie," I said and looked back to the TV He bought the excuse and went back to watching the show. I rolled my eyes. This whole thing was ridiculous.

"Are you hungry?" he asked. I actually was hungry, so I nodded.

"A little," I replied.

"Good, I'll make us dinner," he said.

He kissed my cheek then got up, leaving me there. I let out a sigh of relief. It's really difficult to contain my anger and disgust towards him. I was yet to figure out what my plan even was. I was supposed to make him trust me, but then what do I do?

"Hey Kellin, you wanna come in here and give me a hand?" Vic called from the kitchen after a little while. I was a little startled since he interrupted my deceitful thoughts about him, but I shook it off quickly.

"Yeah, sure," I said and got up from the comfortable spot on the couch. I went in to see him standing at the counter cutting up vegetables. He was making a stir fry. It was sizzling away in the pan and smelt delicious

"Could you get me a spoon from the drawer?" he asked.

Like an obedient prisoner I did as I was told and went to the drawer the cutlery was kept in. He never let me go anywhere near this drawer, and I knew why the second I opened it. Sitting there was a section filled with sharp knives. My hand had a mind of its own as I slowly picked one up.

It was like I was in a trance thinking of all the damage I could do with it. It was tempting, really, it was. Here I was with a weapon in my hand and someone I would be happy to see hurt. It would be so easy to just walk up behind him and stab him, then again the last time I tried that he easily overpowered me and threatened to kill me.

"I said a spoon," Vic said, making me jump.

He was closer to me than I thought. In fact he was standing right in front of me. I looked from the knife and back up to him. He was gazing at me with a blank expression. He hadn't stopped smiling at me for the past two days, and now he was looking at me so seriously. I had to fix this quickly.

"I must have heard wrong," I said and dropped the knife in the drawer.

I quickly picked up a spoon and held it out towards him. His expression never faltered. I gulped and my palms started to sweat. I had to distract him from whatever doubts he was having about me.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked, taking the small step closer to fill the space between us.

"You tell me," he said. I smiled lightly and put my arms around his neck.

"No, there's nothing wrong. I just get nervous around you, you know? I get flustered like a school boy with a crush and I mishear things," I said.

"Is that so?" he asked.

"Mhm." I mumbled. To make the total lie more believable I pressed my lips against his.

"I love you," I muttered against them.

That was all it took for him to kiss me back, and roughly too. He pushed me against the counter, running his fingers through my hair. I felt nothing. I was scared that I would have felt something, like when I felt something when we had sex, but this time, him touching and kissing me made me feel nothing. It was reassuring to my own sanity. I didn't want this to go further than it had to, and I actually had a legitimate excuse.

"Dinner will burn," I said when I pushed him away. He smiled brightly and pecked my nose.

"You're so clever," he said endearingly.

I sighed in relief when he turned around and went back to cooking the dinner. That was close, too close. This is why I needed to be smarter about this. I can't let my guard down or let him know what I was thinking. I had to do something quick before he figures out what I'm up to.

\----

I showered before Vic, like I did most nights. I walked out to see him lazing around on the bed just like he had been when I went in there. He smiled and got off the bed, heading towards the bathroom for his turn, only he did something different this time. He usually keeps the bathroom door open to keep an eye on me, but this time he shut it completely.

I frowned in confusion. Why would he do that? Maybe he had simply forgotten. I was well aware that I was alone in this room and he would be in there for at least another five to ten minutes. I could run. The thought was so tempting. Of course I wanted to run. I wanted to get out of here. I could just do it. This might be my only chance to escape. I was going to. I really was. I had actually made a move towards the door when something made me stop.

I heard a small gasp coming from the bathroom. I didn't turn my head or make any indication that I heard it, but I did. It dawned on me that he was testing me. The knife incident downstairs; maybe he's still suspicious of it. Vic wasn't stupid. He wouldn't just leave me alone like this. He was trying to see if he could trust me. I bet he was looking through the crack of the door and gasped when he saw me go to leave.

As much as I wanted to leave, I knew he would be out of there in a second to catch me, so instead I flicked the light off, pretending that that was my intention all along, then I went to the bed. I lay down and waited for him. He took a little longer than usual, probably because he would keep coming back to the look through the crack in the door to see if I'm still here. Eventually though he came out, dressed in comfortable clothes for sleeping. He looked so happy to see me. He always did.

"Are you ready for bed?" he asked me.

"Yeah," I said with a nod and fake smile. He walked around to his side of the bed and got in. Like he did every night he reached over to the handcuffs on my bedside table and went to chain me to the bed.

"Oh," I said, sounding disappointed.

"What is it?" Vic asked. I looked at his concerned face in the moonlight and continued on with my lie. I had very little hope that this would work, but it was worth a try.

"I was just...never mind," I said, acting as though it wasn't a big deal.

"No, what is it?" he asked, just like I expected him to.

"Um...it was just that I kind of...I don't know, it's silly. But...I guess I want to spend the night holding you, and I can't with that on," I said, pointing to the handcuff. He looked at the handcuff thoughtfully.

"Forget it. It was a dumb idea. Here," I said quickly and held my wrist out.

I was really paranoid that he'd see right through my act. I didn't know how well of an actor I was. Vic was delusional though. He heard what he wanted to hear, and I guess he heard that I was telling the truth because he tossed the handcuffs back on the bedside table. Wow, that actually worked. He was incredibly trusting.

"Come here," he said and pulled me close to him. To keep up my act I wrapped my arms around him. I could never get over the fact that I'm in the arms of a murderer.

"You know...I'm really glad you accepted your feelings. I was starting to think you never would," he said.

"Well, it was only a matter of time before I gave in," I said. This is unbearable.

"I'm just so happy we can finally be happy together, no more drama, just me and you, forever," he said and sweetly kissed my forehead.

I just mumbled in agreement. I craved affection in all honesty, which means I should have liked this hug. If anything it made me feel more homesick. It made me miss my parent's hugs. I missed the warmth and love. Instead I just felt coldness being near him. It was soul sucking doing this. I needed to get back to my family. I needed to get away from him. I wanted to be free.

"Promise me you won't break my heart," he whispered in a sleepy state.

"I promise," I said.

I lied. I had every intention of breaking his heart.

I waited hours after he fell asleep so I knew he was in a deep sleep. I spent most of the time building up the courage to do this. I had a lot of time to think while I was waiting for him to fall asleep and I came up with two plans. I slowly pulled myself out of his grasp. He was fast asleep, so it was easy. I got off the bed and looked down at him to make sure he was still asleep. He was.

Plan A: Handcuffs. I picked them up and my heart sank when I saw they were locked. That was my best option. I would handcuff him to the bed and run, but I couldn't if they were locked. I quickly, and as quietly as I could, looked through all the drawers in the room for the key. I couldn't find it anywhere. I looked over the room another two times and couldn't find where he kept it.

I didn't want it to come to plan B. I really didn't. I was terrified. I was having trouble breathing. I wasn't sure if I could go through with this, but when would I have another chance? I had to do it. I kept thinking of the end result. I kept thinking of how badly I wanted to get out of here, and that's what drove me to continue on with plan B.

I tiptoed out of the bedroom and down the stairs, cringing every time the stairs creaked. It was dark and eerie in this house at night time. I never walked around without Vic so I never noticed just how creepy this house actually was. I made my way into the kitchen and opened the cutlery drawer. My hands were shaking when I reached in and picked one out. I can do this, right? I had to. I felt like my heart was going to explode. Never in my life did I think I would be contemplating murdering someone, yet here I was. It was against the law, but what other choice did I have?

I made my way back upstairs. This was actually happening. I had the upper hand now. I had the power literally in the palm of my hand. When I got back into our room I looked down at Vic who was in the same place I left him. This was it. This was how it was going to end. I would kill him and then run. I would be a murderer. That would weigh on my conscience every day for the rest of my life, but I think I was okay with it as long as it meant being free.

I stood over Vic, holding the knife tightly in my hand. Just do it, Kellin, do it. Why wasn't l doing it? Maybe I'm weak? Maybe I just don't have it in me, but I have to do this. I need to. I can't. I'd find another way. I can't do this. Just as I made the decision to go and put the knife back downstairs, his eyes shot open.

"Kellin?" he asked in a confused and tired voice.

He saw the knife. His eyes traveled from my face to the metal blade and they went wide. I panicked. I completely panicked and acted on impulse. If I didn't do it he would have killed me for betraying him, so I did it. I pierced the knife into his stomach. He chortled out a cry of pain. I stood there in shock. Did I just do that? I did.

"You're...going to...regret that," Vic seethed in between breaths.

The threat was real. This was all real. No matter how surreal it was, it was real. It happened. He made a move to get up and that's when I ran from the room. I tripped over in the hallway and quickly scrambled back to my feet. Tears had already begun to fall. The whole situation was intense and terrifying. I had a murderer filled with rage after me. I made a dash down the stairs and to the front door. In my panicked haste I struggled with unlocking it.

"Kellin!" Vic shouted from the top floor.

"No, no, no," I whispered to myself.

I finally got the door unlocked and ran outside. Now what though? I could hear Vic's footsteps coming down the stairs. I didn't want him to see which way I would run. I felt like I was frozen. I was aware he was getting closer. I couldn't think straight, so all I could do was hide around the side of the house. Maybe he would think I ran into the forest and follow after me. I could only hope that was the case. I couldn't move, I was that petrified.

"Kellin!" his loud voice bellowed from the house. He was close. He must have been at the door. I pressed myself against the wall of the house, begging and pleading to God that he wouldn't find me.

"You know I have a car, Kellin! Do you think you can outrun that, huh?! How far do you think you'll get?!" he shouted, sounding more than enraged. I had awoken a beast on a rampage.

"I'll find you, Kellin! I'll always find you!"


	22. Chapter 22

Adrenaline was coursing through my veins. I could feel my heart thrashing against my chest. I could hear my heavy, shaky breaths as I tried to calm myself down and think of a plan. Vic screamed my name from the door again and it startled me so much that I took a step back and tripped over something I felt onto my back and held back the groan of pain so Vic wouldn't hear me.

I looked at what I tripped over. It was a gasoline can. I picked it up to find it was full. My mind worked quickly to formulate a plan. I knew there were matches in one of the top cupboards in the kitchen. Was I really willing to go back in there though? I heard the creaking of the hardwood floors. I crawled over to the corner and peaked around it. Vic was going back inside. He said he would find me in his car, meaning that he was going to get the car keys. He kept them in a safe upstairs where I couldn't get to them.

I held the gas can firmly in my hand and crept around to the front of the house. I looked through the window. Vic was slowly making his way up the stairs. He was using the banister for support and his other arm was across his stomach. He was stumbling and not moving fast at all. I knew that I had to do something now while he's upstairs and I had to be quick. I ran back to the front door and as quietly as I could went inside.

I snuck into the kitchen and was quick to find the matches hidden away at the back of one of the cupboards. I went back to the hall and hid behind a wall. I peeked around the side and saw he made it to the top of the stairs and was going down the hall. I waited for a few more seconds when I knew he'd be going to the spare room where the safe was. It might have been easier for me to find a knife and attack him while he's weak, but this was Vic I was talking about. He could dig deep and find the strength to overpower me and kill me himself.

I had to do this from a distance. I quietly walked to the staircase and emptied the gasoline on the steps, banister and walls. When I got to the top I splashed some over the hallway. I was so scared he would catch me in the act. I heard him close the safe and the jingling of keys. I gasped and stepped back down the stairs to safety. Time was running out, so I took out a match, lit it, and threw it on the stairs. They went up in flames instantaneously.

"Kellin! What are you doing?" Vic shouted and a moment later he appeared at the top.

"I'm giving you what you deserve!" I screamed up at him. I threw more gasoline on the flames, making it worse. Vic's eyes were wide. I knew he was scared. Finally, he was the one that scared and I was the one who had the power

"Put the fire out, Kellin! You don't want to do this! You aren't a murderer!" he yelled.

"I know I'm not, but you turned me into this! You have to be stopped!" I shouted.

He did have to be stopped, so I didn't stop with just a fire on the stairs. With the gasoline I spread the fire through the kitchen, dining room, living room, everywhere downstairs. Vic was screaming for me to stop, but I wouldn't. I was acting out of desperation. I did realize I would kill him, but right now that was what needed to be done. Lastly I splashed gas on the walls of the hall and left through the front door. I coughed to get the smoke out of my lungs. The entire bottom floor was set ablaze. I couldn't believe I had it in me to do that. I stepped back away from the house and watched it in wonder.

"Kellin! I loved you, Kellin!" I heard his distant screams of anguish.

My heart leapt into my throat, because I knew that he loved me. I knew he was mentally ill and couldn't comprehend right from wrong. He was messed up and he just needed help, and I wish that he got it.

"Help me! Kellin please help me! I love you, Kellin! Kellin!" the desperate shouts never stopped.

I couldn't help but cry. I was crying for him. I was crying because I believed he could be redeemed, but it wasn't an option. This was my last resort. It was either he die, or I die. I couldn't stand here and listen to his screams anymore, so I ran. I ran in the opposite direction that I ran the one day I had escaped. I was running to the woods finally feeling free. There would be no one after me. Sure, I might be stuck wandering through the woods for days, but at least I wasn't in there.

I heard loud cracking sounds behind me, so I spun around and looked back at the house. The flames had reached the top level and the house was caving in. This was it. This was the end. Just moments later the wooden walls had given up and the house started to collapse into a heap on the ground. It was horrifying to watch knowing there was a person inside of there, but I was done feeling anything towards Vic, whether it be sadness, anger or compassion, I was done. It was all over.

I looked at my surroundings and saw a dirt road. It had to lead to a proper road, so I ran over to it, and I kept running. I was now so eager to get back to my parents. I wanted to get back to my real life. So I ran and I ran until I finally found it; the main road. I couldn't believe it. I was edging closer and closer to finally being home. I couldn't run anymore, so I fell into a walk. I chose a direction and went in it. So much had just happened and I couldn't think about it now. I had to think about getting home. I had walked for maybe an hour when I saw the lights of a pick-up truck. I stood in the middle of the road, waving my hands to make it stop.

"Please stop," I whispered although they couldn't hear me, but they did anyway. The car stopped. I sighed in relief and jogged to their window. There was a man sitting in the driver's seat. He looked like he was maybe in his mid- twenties.

"Are you...are you okay, kid?" he asked. He looked really confused, and hey, I would too if I saw a random boy on the road in the middle of the night wearing nothing but white clothing.

"Please, can you take me to the nearest town?" I asked. He looked at me curiously then his eyes widened.

"You're that Kellin kid, aren't you? The one that everyone in town has been looking for?" he asked. I nodded quickly.

"Yes, that's me. I got away. I just want to go home. I don't even know where we are," I said, feeling incredibly emotional. I just wanted to break down because I was so relieved that I had found someone.

"I know which town you're from. It's been all over the news for weeks. I'll take you there," he said.

"Thank you," I said sincerely. He could have just left me there, but he didn't. I ran around to the passenger side and got in.

"My name's Hudson, by the way," he said as he continued driving.

"It's nice to meet you, and I mean really nice. You have no idea," I said.

"So, it's like a mystery to everyone, where have you been?" he asked.

"I was taken..." I trailed off, unable to talk about what happened while I was taken. He seemed to have understood that and didn't ask again.

Not much else was said. I asked him to take me home but he insisted on taking me to the police station. I didn't care which as long as I was safe. When I saw the familiar buildings of my town I burst into tears. I was here. I was back. I made it! Hudson parked outside the police station and came in with me since he'd probably have to give a statement about where he found me.

It was crazy from there. The police made a huge deal about finally finding me, which of course they would, it had been their main case for weeks. The first thing they did was ask me where I had been, so I told them that Vic had taken me. After telling them about him killing Dylan they were quick to find a picture of him online so I could identify him as Vic Fuentes. Hudson told them where he found me in the woods and they sent a lot of police officers and a fire brigade to the place.

They called my parents. When I saw my mom and dad walk through the front doors, looking around frantically, I jumped from my seat and ran to them.

"Mom! Dad!" I called out to them.

Their eyes landed on me and the three of us broke down into tears; even my father who was usually so composed and rarely showed these types of emotions.

"Kellin!" my mom cried.

I fell into both of their arms, holding on for dear life. The love and warmth that I had craved for so long was not a let-down. I felt safe. I felt loved. I knew everything would be okay now. The three of us stood there for a long time in a huddled embrace. My mom pulled back and grabbed my face, wiping the tears from my eyes.

"Oh Kellin, we were so scared," she sobbed.

"I'm okay, mom, I'm okay. I'm here," I said.

She just broke down into more tears, so I held her tightly. I looked at my dad who was really happy to see me. I glanced behind them and saw two people that I didn't expect to me here; my best friends Jack and Gabe. They walked through the door and looked so relieved when they saw me. I tore myself from my mother and practically jumped at the two boys. Just like my parents had, they hugged me back tightly.

"I called these two when we got the call that you were here," my dad said, "They've been looking for you more than anyone else has."

I was so happy to see them again. They were the last people I talked to before I was abducted. I pulled away and looked at the two of them, smiling.

"I'm so sorry, Kellin. I should have been looking out for you," Jack said.

"We're both sorry. We should have walked with you to the bus stop," Gabe said. Both of their eyes were swimming with guilt. I shook my head quickly.

"No, no, it's not your fault, please don't think that," I said.

"Where were you anyway?" Gabe asked. Them and my parents all looked at me curiously.

"I was taken by someone. His name was Vic. He kidnapped me and kept me locked up, but I killed him and escaped," I gave them the extremely condensed version of the story. My mom gasped at the word 'killed'. I hoped no one would judge me for what I did, but they had to understand I had to do it.

"Kellin," a voice came from behind me. I turned and saw one of the detectives there, "Could I get you in here for your official statement?"

I nodded, and so my parents and I went into one of the rooms where there was a tape set up for me to give my statement on. I told them everything. I told them every little detail that I could remember. My mom sat there crying when I told them what Vic had done to me. It was hard to talk about, but I had to. After a long, long time I was done and I was allowed to go home, but not before receiving one last piece of information; the police had found the remains of Vic's burnt body. He was dead. It was over.


	23. Chapter 23

It was the same thing over and over again. I'd be asleep in my bed, feeling safe and secure, then I would feel him on me. His kisses. His touches. My skin crawls. My stomach drops. Nothing feels okay. It was like I was back in that house with him. Anxiety would fill every inch of my being. Somewhere in the middle of it I'd realize I was having a dream and I'd try to force myself awake, but he was holding me down. He was holding me back from escaping my own thoughts. His hand would cover my mouth to stop my desperate screams and begs for mercy. I could never wake myself up no matter how hard I tried. I was constantly trapped.

"Kellin," the hand touching my shoulder was the thing that brought me back to reality. My body reacted before my mind did and I was screaming.

"Don't touch me!" my voice echoed around the silent room.

My quick panting was in time with my erratic heartbeat. It was only after I screamed that I realized it wasn't Vic touching me. I was sitting on the floor in one of the college lecture halls. The whole class was watching me and my professor, the one who touched my shoulder, was standing next to my desk.

I was still breathing quickly, too quickly to get a sufficient amount of oxygen into my lungs. There were so many people watching me it made me feel uncomfortable. I leapt up from the ground and made a dash for the door.

"Mr. Sykes, could you make sure he's okay?" I heard the professor say just before I left.

I slid down one of walls and sat on the floor of the empty hallway with my head in my hands. I took deep breaths to prevent myself from freaking out further. I told myself over and over again that I was okay. I was in class and Vic was dead. He was gone. He can't get to me. I was safe.

"Are you alright?" the voice of one of my classmates, Oliver Sykes, asked. I looked at him. He was kneeling on the ground in front of me. I nodded quickly.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," I squeaked out, "I think I might go for a walk though."

"Mind if I tag along? He asked me to look out for you, after all," he said.

I actually preferred not being alone, so I nodded before standing up. The two of us walked side by side down the hall. I didn't know Oliver Sykes very well. I had barely talked to him really. He seemed nice enough though.

"So, Kellin, how are you doing since... you know," he trailed off.

I rolled my eyes. Ever since I came back to college, it's just been everyone hounding me about what happened. I got back home a little over a week ago and decided I wanted to go back to school as soon as possible. I just wanted my life to get back to normal, or at least as normal as it could be.

The media went crazy trying to get my story, but in order to protect myself from the public view, my parents thought it best that I kept things to myself. I wasn't opposed to it. I didn't want to be in the limelight. I just wanted everything to go back to normal, plus it was horrible talking about it. No one understood that I didn't want to tell them exactly what happened. Every day, more like every hour, I'd have someone ask me for details about what happened, and every time I'd tell them the same thing.

"Look, if you want me to tell you about what happened, then I'm sorry, but I'm not going to talk about it," I said.

"I wasn't going to ask. I just wanted to know how you were," he said. I frowned at myself. I guess it was rude of me to jump to that conclusion.

"Oh...sorry. Um, I'm fine," I lied, but come on, I wasn't about to tell a stranger that I felt like crying every second of every day and that I constantly felt like I was going crazy because I'm having difficulty distinguishing between real life and whatever dream I'm having.

"That's good. I don't need to ask you for details about what happened anyway," he said.

I glanced at him in curiosity as we stepped outside the building. I just really needed some fresh air.

"Why's that? Everyone is usually so interested," I said. I sat on the front steps and he sat next to me.

"I already know everything that happened to you," he said.

"How?"

"My dad is the detective that was assigned to your case," he explained. Oh, that's right. Detective Sykes. I don't know why I didn't make the connection any sooner.

"Sorry, I know you don't want people knowing, but I get curious about these things. I kind of read your, uh, your full statement," he said. I was feeling kind of uncomfortable now. There Were a lot of deeply personal things written in that statement and now this guy knows.

"Oh...that's...uh, yeah..." I wasn't sure what to say.

"I'm freaking you out, aren't I? I just get fascinated by these things," he said.

I held my tongue because to me there was nothing fascinating about it. So many people feed off of tragic stories, but it actually happened to me and is still happening to me. It isn't some horrific journey that just ended. I'm going to have nightmares about this for the rest of my life. I'll have panic attacks. I'll never be able to get intimate with someone. I'll never trust anyone again. I'll never go anywhere on my own. It's never going to end for me.

"Yeah, I get it," I told him.

I looked away from him and out at the front gardens. Someone was walking towards us, which wasn't that uncommon. People always come and go as they please. This is a public building after all. The person was thin, lanky and had tanned skin. He looked so familiar. As he got closer and I saw his eyes my heart stopped.

"Are you okay?" Oliver asked next to me. Was I? I shook my head quickly. I was imagining things. Those eyes just looked so much like Vic's. I truly was crazy. I can't freak out every time I see a Latino boy walk by.

"I'm okay," I said quietly. The boy walked up the stairs, past us, but then he stopped. From the corner of my eye I saw him backtrack and look at me. I looked back nervously.

"You're Kellin Quinn, right?" the boy asked. I looked at Oliver who was just as clueless about who this person was as I was.

"Um, yes," I said cautiously.

"Oh...well, I was coming here to look for you. You don't know me but my name is Mike Fuentes," he said. Goosebumps broke out on my skin at the mention of that name.

"Fuentes?" I asked.

"Yes, my brother was Vic," he said.

'Confronting' would be the word that I would use to describe this moment. Standing in front of me was the brother of the man I had killed. I didn't know what to do or say in a situation like this, so I kept quiet.

"The cops didn't think it was a good idea for me to see you, but I just really feel like I have to talk to you," he said. He paused and once I didn't reply, he spoke again, "Please? Can we talk? Like, alone?"

I looked at Oliver again. I wasn't willing to be on my own with this Mike person. He could be here to get revenge for his brother's death for all I know. He could be just as crazy as Vic. But, on the other hand he might not be deceitful. He might really need to talk to me about what happened.

"Um, we can talk, but not alone," I said.

Mike looked to Oliver and just nodded in understanding.

"Okay, I get it. Basically I just want to apologize for everything he did to you. I know an apology doesn't even nearly make up for what he did, but I, and my parents, are really sorry that happened," he explained. I just nodded, accepting the apology. It wasn't his fault Vic was crazy.

"I just...I barely even know what to say to you right now. I guess I was kind of looking for closure or...I don't know," Mike said.

It became clear that he really didn't know what he was here for. Sure, he wanted to apologize, but he seemed so confused. I decided to speak up because there were some things about Vic I wanted to know.

"Had he always been crazy?" I asked him. He shrugged slightly.

"It's hard to say...I mean he'd always been different, ya know? There was always something off about him. He was always so hostile and that's why my parents made him leave. He got scary to be around sometimes," he said.

That was a different story to what Vic had given me about his parents kicking him out of home. I believed Mike a lot more than Vic though.

"He was never diagnosed with anything?" I asked.

"Not officially, but just from being around him I thought maybe he had an impulse disorder, maybe schizophrenia I don't know, I'm no doctor," he said. That would make sense. He definitely had some kind of disorder, that was for sure.

"Oh, okay then," I said timidly. Mike nodded. The whole thing was awkward.

"Is there anything else?" I asked.

"No...no...I guess I just wanted to make sure you were okay," he said.

"Okay," I said simply, unsure of what to say. A moment of silence past between us, and then he just nodded respectfully and went to leave. I finally figured out something to say though.

"I'm sorry I killed him," I blurted out. I had been ridden with guilt since it happened. I took another person's life. I ended it. That was on me. I took away his brother. He turned back to face me.

"Don't be. Trust me when I say he got what he deserved. Don't be sorry," he said, and with that he turned and continued on his way. I let out a deep breath.

"That was intense," Oliver took the words right out of my mouth.

I looked at him and nodded. It really was. The guilt I felt for killing Vic had lifted, only a little. I still felt it, but I felt better knowing that his family wasn't resentful towards me. I went back into class after that and tried to continue on with my day like a normal person would. It went on forever but eventually I was walking out after my last class with Jack and Gabe on either side of me.

The two had been the perfect friends since all of this happened. They took me to and from school every day. They made sure I was never alone and I was grateful of that. We were walking towards the parking lot when I saw two police officers; one woman and one man, coming towards us. I had a feeling they were for me. I stopped in my tracks. Gabe and Jack stayed close by me.

"What do you think they want?" Gabe asked with a hint of worry to his voice.

"I have no idea," I said truthfully.

The officers were looking right at me with sympathetic looks. When they got to me it was the pretty, young, blonde lady officer who spoke.

"Kellin Quinn?" she asked.

"Yeah, that's me." I said.

"We're going to have to ask you to come with us," she said. I looked at Gabe and Jack for help but they were clueless.

"Am I in trouble?" I asked cautiously.

"No, sir. This is for your own safety. Now, if you could come with us," she said. My own safety? I thought I was safe. Wasn't I?

"Tell me what's going on or I'm not going anywhere with you," I demanded. The two officers looked at each other having a silent conversation.

"Tell me!" I repeated, getting scared. They looked so concerned. Finally one of them came clean and I wished they hadn't.

"Kellin...the lab results came back for the body found in the fire. The DNA showed it belonged to someone in their 40s. We believe it was Rick's. Vic Fuentes...might still be alive."


	24. Chapter 24

My whole world fell from underneath me when the police officer told me Vic might still be alive. How was this even possible? I stabbed him in the stomach! I left him trapped inside a burning house! I saw the house collapse. There was no way he could have gotten out of that.

"You're wrong." I told them. I shook my head quickly in disbelief, "You're wrong, okay?"

"We're sure, Kellin. The body doesn't match Vic Fuentes'" The lady officer said. I didn't want to believe it. I don't know how I felt about it. I was terrified that Vic would come for me. He said that he would always find me. That was a promise I was sure he'd keep. So sure, I was terrified, but on the other hand I felt a sense of relief knowing that I hadn't murdered him. I wasn't a murderer anymore. The frightened feeling took over anything else though.

"But he said that he buried Rick. His body wasn't in the house." I argued.

"We had search team scan the area and found where we presume Rick was buried. It had been dug up. We think Vic faked his own death to distract us while he got away." She said. He was wounded and he still managed to do that? He managed to somehow get out of the house, dig up Rick's body and escape. He was unstoppable.

"W-well you can find him, right? You're looking?" I asked quickly.

"Of course we're looking, but until we find him you're going to have around the clock police supervision." She said. I couldn't believe this, or more, I didn't want to believe it. I thought that this whole ordeal was over, or at least as over as it could be.

"This can't be happening." I said, looking to Jack and Gabe. Both of them looked pale and shocked. They cared for me a lot so I knew they would be freaking out too.

"It's okay, Kellin," Jack said, being the supportive person he always was, "It's okay. The police will protect you. He's not going to get to you."

"You don't know him!" I practically shouted, "He won't stop until he finds me!"

People were beginning to look at us. Then again a lot of students already were when they saw me talking to the police. Jack had a really concerned look on his face. I bet he didn't even believe it was going to be okay.

"Kellin, we're going to take you home to your parents now." The male officer spoke instead.

"Do they know?" I asked them.

"That Vic is alive? Yes, they do. We told them before coming to get you." He said. They're probably worried sick. It had been a never ending nightmare for them too. It was hard on them having lost a son and they wouldn't be able to handle it if it happened again. I was standing there shaking. I felt sick to my stomach and couldn't breathe. I just want this torture to end.

I eventually went with the police officers though. Jack came with me for emotional support and when I got home I was met with my very emotional mother. My father was angry. He was ready to go out there and find Vic himself. I wouldn't allow him to join the search though. I just wanted me and my family to be safe from this monster.

—

The days went on in a blur. I didn't go to school. I locked myself in my bedroom and never left except when it was necessary. I was constantly scared, just waiting for him to come and take me away. I couldn't live my life anymore. It was on hold and would be until he's found. Vic managed to hide from the police for a year after he killed Dylan. He's a smart person, he'll be able to hide from them again.

I thought to myself that maybe he did die somewhere in the woods because of blood loss, but that still didn't sit well with me because what if they don't find the body? If they never find him I could be living in fear for my whole life. If he doesn't come after me I'll constantly be looking over my shoulder just waiting for him. I'll never be able to be alone again. I can't have police protection for my entire life. Sure, right now I felt kind of safe. There was a police car out the front and back of the house, just like they had been since we found out Vic wasn't dead. They were protecting us, but how long would that last? Would they disappear if the search gets called off?

Detective Sykes suggested me and my family go into witness protection. I didn't want to leave my friends, or my other relatives who live close by. I didn't like the idea at all, but I knew that I'd seriously have to consider it if they don't find Vic. I'd have to leave everything behind and go live by a different name. For now though, that wasn't what I was going to do. For now I just had to wait and hope for the best.

"Kellin, sweetie?" My mom asked from the doorway. I looked up from my sitting position on the bed. She gave a small, but completely sympathetic smile.

"Yeah?" I asked. She walked over and sat on the edge of my bed. I pulled the sleeves of my hoodie down over my hands and hugged my knees to my chest tightly.

"You should get some sleep." She told me. I shook my head.

"No, I'm okay. I'm not tired." I lied.

"You haven't slept in days. I can see it in your eyes. You need to sleep." She said. I was quiet for a little while. She was right, I haven't slept, mostly because of the dreams. She looked so worried for me, so to put her mind at rest I nodded.

"Okay, I'll sleep for a little." I said.

"For the whole night." She said firmly. I sighed, but gave in, nodding again.

"Okay." I whispered. She moved closer and wrapped her arms me in a warm embrace.

"I love you." She said. I smiled and hugged her back muttering an 'I love you too'. My bond with my parents has strengthened since everything happened. We were always close, but after they almost lost me, and after I thought I'd never see them again, it made us all really appreciate each other a lot more.

"Get some rest." She said when she pulled away. I merely nodded as she left my room. I sighed deeply and lay down on the bed. It was difficult to get my mind at rest. I felt like I was back in Vic's basement, too terrified to sleep because I thought either he or Rick would be after me. The only comfort I had right now was knowing there were police officers on either side of my house and the doors were locked. That was enough to make me feel secure enough to fall asleep.

—

I woke up panting and sweating. The images of Vic were still swimming around my mind. The dream was so intense. I dreamt that I was back in the woods, running from Vic. He found me and forced himself onto me. He told me over and over how much he loved me and how we were going to be a perfect, loving family. Then he was just standing there, looking at me with a blank, yet completely psychotic expression. His body was mutilated. His skin was black, burnt from the fire. Blood seeped out of him. Smoke was radiating off his body and he kept saying the same thing repeatedly, like a chant; "I'll always find you."

I remember trying to force myself awake from the dream, but that never worked. I was always stuck, which begs the question, what woke me up? In a panic I sprinted over to my light switch and turned it on. The room was empty. I dropped to the floor and looked under the bed. Empty. I looked in the closet. Empty. I was alone in my room. I sat on my bed, breathing heavily to calm myself down. My heart was pounding because of the adrenaline rush. I felt a little disoriented, but not tired at all.

I looked at my alarm clock. It was 12:30AM. I didn't want to be alone right now, especially after a dream like that, so I decided to sneak into my parent's room. It was a completely childish thing to do, to crawl into your parent's bed and sleep there for the night, but I had a couple of times since I got back and they completely understood.

I got up, went over to my bedroom door and opened it. I looked down the hall and the first thing I noticed was the glow from the television down stairs. It wasn't uncommon for my mom and dad to stay up late watching television. I went down the hall and stopped at their bedroom first. I opened the door, flicked the light switch and saw the room was empty. They must both be down there. I guess I'll join them.

I went downstairs and to the living room. The TV had a movie on it and I could see the backs of my parent's heads while they sat on the couch watching. All I wanted to do was curl up on the other couch and fall asleep.

"Mom, dad?" I questioned, mostly warning them of my arrival. I didn't get a response and that's when I felt like something was wrong.

"Mom." I said louder. I've come down here plenty of times before and found them sleeping on the couch. Only right now I was already in a frightened frame of mind because of the dream. I cautiously walked around the side of the couch and my eyes fell on the two of them.

The air left my lungs and my mouth opened wide as a silent scream begged to escape. Sitting there, slumped on the couch were my parents with their throats slashed and blood covering them. My knees gave out and I dropped to the floor.

"No, no, no! No! This isn't happening." I said just as I burst into tears. I covered my face with my hands, shaking my head repeatedly. I didn't just see this. This isn't happening. This can't be happening. It's all a dream.

"Wake up, Kellin, wake up." I desperately pleaded to myself, but that was the thing with dreams and reality. When you're in a dream and realize that it's a dream, you know it is. When you're in reality and think it's a dream, you just know it's not. But it has to be because this can't be real. I looked up again, horrified by the sight before me. Bile lifted to my throat and I swallowed it down, shaking my head again.

"Mom! Dad!" I screamed. I crawled over to them. I wanted to hold them. I wanted to scream for them to wake up, but their vacant eyes told me what the truth was. They were dead. I whimpered as a new wave of sobs washed over me.

"I-it's a dream. I'm d-dreaming. It's not real." I cried. It's not, it's not, it's not.

"You're not dreaming." A deadly voice came from inside the room. It was a voice I wished I would never hear again. It was a voice that made my blood run cold every time I so much as thought of it. I scrambled up from the floor, spun around in every direction until I saw Vic standing by the hallway. He was here, right in front of me. He wasn't dead. He wasn't in the woods trying to hold onto his life. No, he was here, in my living room. He looked a mess. He was filthy, like he had been living in the woods. His clothes were torn and still bloody.

"You sick son of a bitch! Why would you do this?! How could you do this to me?!" I screamed at him. I wanted to make as much noise as possible. The police were outside. How did they not see him? Why didn't they do their fucking job?!

"Because, Kellin, the only thing holding you back from loving me were your parents. You always just wanted to get back to them instead of being with me, but now that's not a problem. Now you can love me. You have to because I'm the only family you have." He said. He spoke so calmly and it made me sick. He was just as delusional as before. He always would be.

"No! You are not my family! They are!" I said and pointed to my parents. Were. They were my family. It hurt. It hurt so bad. I can't imagine life without them in it. I couldn't. Right now I had to get away from my immediate threat, and that was Vic.

"I will always love you more than them! Can't you see that?" He took a step towards me and it was that one movement that made me run. I made a dash for the kitchen, but he was expecting it. He blocked me off and caught me before I had a chance to run.

"Hel-" I started to scream but his hand covered my mouth. He pinned me against a wall and looked into my eyes. I saw l nothing but love and adoration. There was no murderous glint although he just killed my parents. There was no guilt. No fear. There was just love towards me. He was crazy!

"Shh shh, it's okay. It's all gonna be okay." He said. With his free hand he took something out of his pocket, then I saw it. It was a needle. I screamed against his hand and tried to fight him off. I couldn't let this happen again. I couldn't be taken by him again. I kicked and hit him, but nothing seemed to deter him from his goal. He injected the needle into my neck and soon I was passing out.

—

It was the same feeling. Waking up after being drugged, that is. It was the same feeling every time. First confusion, then disorientation, feeling drunk and sick, next came realization as you put together the pieces of your memory. Finally came the reality of where you are. Where was I? My body was shifted from side to side. I was in a vehicle. My eyes were open but I couldn't see anything. I was covered by a blanket. I pushed it off with my tied up hands. I was laying on the floor of the back seat of a car.

It was happening all over again. I was being kidnapped by him and taken who knows where? I looked up. I saw him sitting there in the driver's seat. He must have heard me move because he looked back and smiled.

"Hey there sleepy head." He said cheerily. What do I do? What can I do? I needed to know where I was. I sat up, feeling light-headed, but that was expected. It was daylight outside the car. We were driving along a long road and we were surrounded by woodland. I lifted myself onto the seat.

"Please let me go." I spoke calmly. He looked back and gave me a 'really?' look, before turning back to the road.

"Do you think I would have gone through all this trouble just to let you go? Baby, no, I found a place for us to live! I have to admit, I was a little disappointed when you set our old house on fire, but I'm willing to forgive and forget so we can move on with our lives." He said.

"You're insane." I whined.

"That's not very nice." He said. Not very nice? Not very nice!?

"You killed my parents!" I screamed at him.

"And I told you why. They got in the way, same with the police officers outside. I had to get rid of them so I could get to you." He said. Whatever excuse he had would never be enough for what he did. I broke down in tears as it all hit me. He killed them. They were gone. They were no longer with me. I couldn't even begin to explain the amount of inner turmoil was going on inside me right now. It hurt more than words could begin to explain. Maybe it was my fault. If it weren't for Vic being obsessed with me then they'd still be alive. I should have left when I found out he was alive. I should have seen that it wasn't safe for them to be around me. I should have known this would happen, but I didn't. Maybe part of me didn't think he would kill them if he came back for me. But he did kill them. He did it.

I was crying for a long time. How long was someone supposed to cry when they're mourning their parents? I've known people who had lost their parents at my age. They said it gets better over time but I can't imagine this pain ever leaving. It would be with me forever. They were murdered and it was partly my fault for bringing Vic into their lives.

I eventually calmed down. It still hurt, but I stopped crying. There were other things weighing on my mind, like the fact that Vic was back. He was alive and he had me.

"How are you alive?" I asked.

"With a lot of perseverance, my dear Kellin. After you left me there to die and just before the house collapsed, I managed to jump from a window on the top floor. It was a nasty fall, sprained an ankle, bruised myself a lot, but all in all I'm okay, you don't have to worry about me. I'm okay, don't feel guilty." He said. Guilty? No, I was now disappointed that he hadn't died or broken a bone.

"And the stab wound?" I questioned.

"Oh now that, that hurt me, Kellin, in more ways than one. It'll take a lot of trust building for me to completely get over that one, but for you I'm willing to try." He said. It was truly terrifying how he really thought we were in love.

"It wasn't very deep anyway. I was smart enough to grab a first aid kit and throw it outside before I jumped. I stitched myself back up and that was that. It still bleeds sometimes though, but it's all good. I hid in the woods after that until I got my strength back up so I could come and find you, and I did. I told you I would." He said. I hated how he spoke so casually. I wanted him to understand what he does to me. I need him to understand that this isn't the right thing to do, but I knew it was useless. I tried on countless occasions to tell him he's mentally ill but he ignored it every time.

"Please let me go. I don't want to be here, Vic. I just want to go home." I pleaded with him.

"Home to what?" He asked. He was right, home to what? I sat back on the seat and looked out the window thoughtfully. I had nothing to go back to. My parents were gone. They were the only thing that kept me hanging on when I was first taken. I always thought of getting back to them and now I had nothing to get back to other than my friends. Jack and Gabe...what will they do when they find out what happened?

I was so lost now. I had nothing to hold onto. My life was in shambles. Even if I did get out of here my life would never be the same. I'd still be too scared to get close to anyone. I'd be forever paranoid that something bad is going to happen. I'd constantly be trapped in my own mind; having nightmares and replaying this horrific ordeal over and over again. If I never got away from Vic then I'd spend the rest of my life being terrified every time he's in the same room as me. I'd spend the rest of my life with the man I loathed, the man who killed my parents, trying to make me love him.

I couldn't live like that. I'd rather be dead. Either way, home or here, I'd rather be dead. It was such a quick realization. I couldn't be with Vic for the rest of my life. I just couldn't do that and right now there was only one other option and I was willing to do it, but how?

My breathing was shaky. My whole body felt numb to everything. Vic was in the front, driving along happily, like he didn't have a care in the world. I was looking out the window wondering how I would do it and when. Then I saw it. A bridge. We were coming up to a bridge. There was no way he would stop the car for me. I pulled at the door handle but there was child lock. I had to do something drastic.

We got onto the bridge. It was long, but I still didn't have much time. Without much thought I leapt forward and grabbed the steering wheel.

"What are you doing?" Vic asked, but it was too late for his protests. I turned the wheel and we crashed into one of the railings. He slammed the breaks on and the car skidded to a stop, screeching along the road and metal of the railings. Before Vic could realize what just happened, I climbed through to the front, unlocked the passenger side door and got out of the car.

Sure, I could have run, but he would have caught up to me. He always would. It didn't look like there was any civilization around for miles. There was only one thing I could do now. One last resort.

"Have you learnt nothing from running from me?" Vic called out. I ignored him and climbed over the railing. This was scary, a lot scarier than being taken by him. This was scary because I knew this was the end.

"Kellin, stop! It's not safe over there!" He warned me. I didn't care. I looked back at him. He was just getting out of the car. I don't think he quite realized the severity of the situation. He thought I was going to run and he would catch me. He had no idea. Before he could come any closer I climbed up over the second railing; the only one separating me from falling. It was a long way down. There was water underneath, but I could see the jagged rocks below. I'd be killed in an instant. I turned to face Vic. I clung to the railing with my feet on the edge. All I had to do was let go. Vic was looking at me with wide eyes.

"Kellin...please climb back over." He said calmly at first. I shook my head as tears started spilling from my eyes.

"No." I said firmly.

"Please don't do this, Kell. Please don't do this to me. We can work things out, I promise." He begged. I shook my head again. What was I waiting for? I just needed to fall. He took a step closer and I flinched, almost losing my footing.

"No!" He shouted when he thought I was going to fall. He let out a sound of anguish. Tears filled his eyes and slipped down his cheeks.

"I love you, Kellin! Please don't jump! Kellin, please! I need you!" He screamed desperately. I could see how much he was hurting. I could see that in his sick, twisted mind this is what he thought was right. He loved me. He wanted to be with me forever and he doesn't understand why that's wrong. This will hurt him just as much as it'll hurt me.

"I won't let you control me anymore." I whispered.

And then I let go.

—

*THIRD PERSON POV*

"Kellin's body was found washed up on a river bank a few days later. The police found the car still stranded on the bridge with no sign of Vic anywhere. It was said that he jumped in after Kellin, but his body was never found." The boy, Oliver Sykes, finished the story. He stopped talking and his friends just looked at him, some shocked, others in disbelief. It was a terrifying story, one filled with such suspense that it had them hanging on to Oliver's every word.

"That was total bullshit." One friend, Matt, said.

"It's all true, I swear. A lot of it was kept under wraps to protect Kellin and the family, but my dad worked the case. I read Kellin's statement, that's how I knew everything." Oliver said. The party had died down long ago so he didn't need to shout for them to hear him.

"I think I heard of that, actually," One of his female friends said. The gorgeous blonde went on, "Yeah, it was on the news a few years ago but they didn't give out many details."

"See, it happened." Oliver said to Matt who just rolled his eyes, still not believing. Oliver chuckled at the disbelief. He knew the story was real, but of course some of his friends just thought he was messing around to scare them.

"Whatever, believe it or not, I don't care. I have an early class tomorrow." He said and stood up. He said goodbye to each of his friends and left the house, walking down the dark road.

Little did he know, the lunatic that he depicted in his story was on the prowl to fill the void in his life. College parties were the perfect place to carry out his plan. They were usually swarming with young boys, mostly too drunk to know what was happening to them. It was when Vic was hiding in the shadows did he hear his name and stick around to hear the story. It was then that he made his decision. Oliver Sykes; he had the right body type, the right pale skin, a dye job would make his hair the right level of darkness. It was enough for Vic to make his choice. He acted on it with no hesitation. He grabbed the boy from behind, covered his mouth and stabbed the needle filled with sedatives into his neck, just like he had done to many before him.

As he felt the boy's body go limp he whispered in his ear...

"You look just like him."


End file.
